Your Singer, My Singer
by Demon of the Snow
Summary: I couldn't explain the attraction I felt towards her, the gravity that pulled me in, the way I felt so alive, finally…What was that Edward had said about La Tua Cantante? Starts in New Moon, AliceXBella, Alice POV
1. Chapter 1: Race Against Time

Chapter 1: Race Against Time

**A/N: I've been writing this story off and on for months, and aside from a few close friends, I haven't had the courage to show anybody. I finally feel confident, and I'm proud enough of this story to post it at last. **

**I'm not sure how long this story will end up being, but I have several chapters written already and have plans for quite a few more. Oh, and if you're not cool with girl-on-girl, I suggest you run very far away. :) **

**Disclaimer: I am not Stephanie Myer. If I was, Edward would never have ended up with Bella, Alice would feature much more prominently in the book, and I'd be publishing this as a book to make millions of dollars instead of posting it on the internet. As it is, I'm borrowing these lovely characters briefly and am keeping them hostage in basement – I mean…taking them on a lovely vacation with me. Yes. That's it.  
**

**Set in New Moon. Alice returns to Forks to find Bella after a strange vision leads her home. She never had the courage to tell her best friend of her feelings, but maybe she'll finally find her voice…**

_The very first thing I noticed about this vision was the change in how I perceived it. It was as if I was there, standing on the sheer cliff side beside the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. I could smell the salt in the air from the sea below me and feel the gentle breeze as it blew onto my face…these were senses I had never been aware of in visions.  
_

_But they were so…dull. The sea that spread around me was a blank gray mass broken only by the occasional white streaks as the water churned angrily. I could not distinguish one drop from the other, could not perceive the spectrum of colors that I would have normally seen when light hit the spray that lashed at the rocks below the cliff I stood on. The air on my face felt like one mass pushing against my skin, not a million gentle breaths moving against my body. The salt from the seawater was so faint, so far off, when it should be dominating my nose. _

_ Though there should be other smells…the exhaust fumes from cars that had recently passed on the road nearby, the slightly damp earth beneath my feet, the girl next to me…the one whose scent I had come to know so well that it was branded forever upon my mind, the smell I could mentally conjure up in a moment's notice…almost imperceptible, despite the fact that I stood a mere five feet away from her.  
_

_But her beauty would not be diminished. She stood frozen on the cliff's edge, staring down at the water, her mouth in a slight frown as if she was deep in thought. Her hair fluttered gently around her face as the wind picked up slightly, and although I could not see each individual strand as I normally did, I still felt the all-too-familiar urge to run my fingers through it.  
_

_Even with my senses so dull, I could still make note of the differences in her since last we had seen each other. She had lost weight, clearly; her clothes hung off her and she appeared even more fragile than before. She was paler, too, her skin having lost what little tan it had once absorbed under the Arizona sun. But most frightening of all were her eyes. What I had come to know as the two brownest, clearest, most __beautiful eyes__ in the world…the eyes which held the gaze that haunted my memory, the eyes that always made me feel so vulnerable when they met mine, once so powerful and full of life…they now seemed a dull gray, a perfect mirror of the sea they gazed upon. The small spark, the fire that had once been present was gone without a trace.  
_

Bella…oh god, Bella, what happened to you?_ I thought to myself, though I already knew the answer. We had left her. No…_he_ had left her. I had to remember that. She was mourning _his_ loss. Not mine.  
I felt a brief flare of anger within me as I saw her looking so lost, so dead…it was his fault! He had left her and caused her this pain; caused her to withdraw like this…Immediately the anger subsided, replaced quickly with guilt. I could not be mad at Edward. He had done what was best, removed us from her to protect her…  
_

_All of my thoughts took only fractions of a second, and were silenced immediately by the sound of Bella sighing softly next to me. I turned to look at her, watching as she took a deep breath. What was she doing?  
It happened so fast. One moment she was staring out to sea, motionless, and the next, she was hurtling off the cliffside. My body tensed in horror as I watched her fragile body twist and arch before she hit the water with a splash that even my annoyingly weak ears could hear over the sounds of the rushing waves. I watched the ripples she had made in the surf, wanting to cry out but finding no sound in my throat…the seconds ticked by and still she did not resurface, and now my voice seemed to find itself…  
_

"BELLA!"

My piercing scream echoed through the stillness of the house as my eyes shot open to stare into the eyes of my family standing motionless around me, their stone faces twisted into expressions of worry. Several thoughts hit me at exactly the same instant:

_That vision…I saw it differently, as if I was…human?_

Quickly drowned out by:

_Bella! Oh god, Bella…she can't be gone, no, this can't be happening…  
_

Which was lightly shoved aside and replaced with:

_Edward. EDWARD. I'm gonna kill him…_

In the end, I was only able to express the last one, at least for the moment.

His face hovered in the air to my right, looking shocked. The idea to punch him in the face entered my mind, and my fist flew out the instant I thought of it so that he wouldn't have a chance to read my mind. Amazingly, I made contact, causing him to fly back several feet. Edward looked stunned and slightly confused. He stared at me as if I was a book written in a different language.

"Alice…" he whispered softly, but I cut him off.

"She JUMPED! You wanted to protect her from other vampires, Edward? Did you forget what she might do to HERSELF?"

Everyone else in the room gasped at my words, but Edward and I held each other's gazes. I knew he had seen through me. My pain was mirrored on his face as we both thought of the girl we loved falling from a cliff…

But I had another thought in mind as well. I had never felt anger like this before. I had resented Edward for so long now, ever since I had first laid eyes on Bella. I had hated myself for having such strong feelings towards my _brother's girlfriend_, then had hated myself even more when all my rage had centered on Edward. I had managed to keep my anger hidden from even him, keeping my thoughts on other things whenever I figured he could hear me, but I could never hide my disgust from myself. He had her, he loved her. That was fine with me, or it should have been.

Still…the irrational anger had persisted, despite my best efforts to repress it. But there was no way I would've ever been able to hide that vision from him, and now he knew.

He took a long blink and opened his mouth to speak before closing it again and tilting his head to the side, squinting his eyes and staring at me in confusion. Finally he managed to whisper, "Alice…I suspected your feelings, I just had no way of knowing that this would happen…" His voice broke at the end of his words and the confusing look on his face fell away as he turned from me, realization hitting him square in the face. His expression was frozen in horror, his body trembled, and he almost seemed to die in front of me. Somewhere in the back of my brain, the rational part of me that was his loving sister felt deep pity for him. But at the moment, it was buried under quite a bit of anger.

"Save it, Edward. I'm going to clean up your mess." I turned to the front door and was standing beside my car seconds later. I reached for the door and froze as another vision hit me. Good, Edward would not follow. He had already given up, but I hadn't.

I unlocked the door as I heard someone approach from behind me. I glanced backwards and sighed. Jasper.

"In a bit of a rush…"

"You love her, don't you?" He blurted out. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. It had been so stupid of me to assume he didn't know; he knew my emotions better than anybody. There was no point in lying.

"Yes," I said simply. His hard expression didn't change. "I'm sorry, Jasper."

"I knew it. I felt it every time you looked at her. I even felt your anger towards Edward."

A moment passed. My hand was still on the door handle, waiting for him to be finished so that I could leave.

He must have sensed my impatience. "Am I keeping you?" he asked with an edge in his voice. Once again, I saw no point in lying.

"Yes."

He sighed, his face now looking simply sad. "I love you, Alice."

I turned to look him in the eye, trying to express how sorry I was for all of this. "I love you too, Jasper. Just not in the way you think. Not anymore." I opened the car door, got in, and started it. He stood as still as a statue as he watched me back down the dirt road.

As soon as I was out of his sight, I gunned the accelerator, racing to Forks, praying that I was not too late.

As I pulled up to Bella's driveway, I let out a small sigh of relief when I saw her parked truck. It was dark as I got out of my Porsche; the journey had taken most of the day at top speed. Charlie's cruiser was gone, so I didn't bother to knock and simply burst through the front door.

Her scent…oh my god. More intense relief struck me, as well as a stab of pain in my chest and a burning in my throat.

_Bella._

My eyes found her immediately. She was standing by the couch, her eyes locked onto mine. As I watched her recognize me, a spark flashed from her eyes. For a moment she looked just like the Bella I had left.

"A-Alice…" her voice broke as she spoke, her body now visibly trembling. She looked at me with fear, as if she was scared to believe that I was really there. More pain in my still heart.

She launched herself at me then, latching onto me and breathing heavily as sobs shook her body. My arms locked around her tightly, though I was very careful. She felt as if she might break in my arms.

"Bella…oh thank god, you're ok…"

She turned her tear-stained face to mine, looking as if she was going to say something, but then another sob hit and she simply buried her face in the crook of my neck. I held her, rubbing her back gently and making soothing noises. The joy I felt at seeing her alive was warring with the guilt I felt at causing her so much pain. After what seemed like an eternity, her tears ran dry and her body fell still, apparently too tired to even tremble anymore.

"Alice…" she repeated, her voice less shaky than before, "Alice, why did you leave?"

Her voice was thick with pain and I felt as if I could cry with her. I felt a strange sensation, a slight tingle behind my eyes…and then it faded as my throat decided I wasn't paying enough attention to it and began to burn even hotter. I winced, both from the thirst and from her words.

Her eyes caught my motion and she stared up at me, reading all of the guilt in my expression. She looked as if she would break down again so I quickly lifted her into my arms and took her to the couch, laying her down as I spoke, breathing very carefully.

"Bella…I am so sorry, I left because I thought it was best for you…we all did. After what happened with James, and then Jasper's reaction to your blood at the party…we couldn't put you at risk anymore, we didn't think you could take it or that you should have to suffer through any of it, just for our sake…"

She interrupted me with a soft whisper, "No…you sound just like _him_…"

I knew who "him" was. Her eyes began to water again and I gently pulled her head against my chest. "I'm sorry, I hated the idea, I fought against it the hardest…but in the end I still left. I wouldn't have left Bella; I swear I wouldn't have left if I had known what you were going to do when we were gone!"

She sniffled, looking up at me with a confused look on her face. "What was I going to do?"

I returned the look, thoroughly confused myself. I had seen Bella jump from a cliff, meaning she had to have been at least contemplating suicide, and I hadn't had a vision of her since then to tell me that she had changed her mind. But then, the vision had been odd…and although the sensations I had experienced in them had seemed strange, they also, in a way, seemed familiar. I couldn't remember my human life, but I would have bet my entire closet that humans saw and felt things in a way quite similar to the way I had seen and felt them in the vision. That had to mean something…my vision might have been defective.

That thought frightened me. My visions have never led me astray like this before. Still, I decided to tell Bella what I had seen. "I saw you jump from the bluffs…"

Her body stiffened in my arms and her eyes went wide. "You saw that?" she asked in a voice so quiet I doubted any human could have heard it.

"Yes Bella…you went under water and you…" I forced the words out, "…you didn't come back up."

"Oh my god…" her hand flew to cover her mouth.

"But I'm glad I made it before you actually…" I couldn't find it within myself to finish that sentence.

"No, Alice…I already did that."

"What!"

"No, wait!" she held up her hands and looked at me pleadingly, "It was for fun, I swear!"

She might as well have just announced that being hit on the head with a baseball bat was a pleasuring experience. "…Fun?"

"Yes…" she sighed heavily, "I saw some of Jake's friends jumping from the bluffs and it looked…well, at the time it looked kind of stupid, but later when I went back I was bored and I just kind of wondered what it would be like and I just…jumped."

Scratch the baseball bat and replace it with an 18-wheeler. Now you have the look I was giving her.

"We leave town…and suddenly you're jumping off of cliffs…for FUN?"

She winced, "Well, when you put it like that…"

I slapped my forehead. A loud "CRACK" echoed through the entire house at the impact, making Bella wince again.

I forced my brain to concentrate through the haze that had settled thickly over my brain at the scent of her blood. The girl had no sense of self-preservation…but of course, I already knew that. Here I was, a thirsty vampire, with my arms around her. Bella was a trouble magnet.

I shook my head to clear it. The motion was so quick that I knew Bella hadn't picked up on it. I couldn't think about my thirst right now…I had to focus…

Bella had been under the water. The fall hadn't looked terribly lethal but she hadn't come out of the water. I opened my mouth to voice my thoughts out loud when she interrupted me, "Don't worry, I won't do that again. Jake having to save me from drowning once is quite enough."

I took a long blink. So long that I think she actually noticed it. "…Jake?" I asked.

"My…friend, Jacob Black. I've known him since we were kids. He was near the cliffs when I went under, and he went in and saved me."

Why the HELL did I not see that? Something weird was going on here. "Tell me about your friend."

She smiled, and while it wasn't nearly as bright or as beautiful as it had once been, even though it looked so strained…it was the most beautiful sight I had seen in a long time. I felt that strange tightness return to my chest, and I groaned audibly as the fire in my throat raged stronger. I pulled away from her quickly and turned my head to the side, stopping my lungs from taking in oxygen. She stiffened next to me.

"Alice?" Hurt was evident in her words, but I couldn't risk taking a breath to answer her, so I held my hand up, signaling her to wait a moment. The seconds ticked by and I could feel her hard gaze on me. I swallowed a few times and the fire receded, if only slightly. _You haven't hunted…that was SO STUPID…_Of course I hadn't hunted; my only thought had been getting here in time. I hadn't even been sure if she was going to be here.

I took a few test breaths. It was better than before, but it still took all of my willpower to resist pouncing on the girl next to me. I had to hunt, and soon.

"Sorry, Bella…your scent is…" I closed my eyes tightly and buried my face in a pillow. I could still smell her on it, but it was fainter. I focused instead on Charlie's scent, which was a bit stronger since he sat here watching TV almost every night. Not that his didn't smell like food, either, but at least it wasn't nearly as…intoxicating…oh god. I felt the pillow tear a bit in my fingers as I pressed it even closer to my face.

I heard Bella mutter a soft "Oh," and felt the couch cushion shift as she eased herself away from me. The thought that she actually had to back away from me made me hurt almost as much as the thirst itself. For the first time I actually felt…monstrous. I could understand Edward a bit more, a thought that made me even more disgusted with myself.

I pulled the pillow off my face. Alright…Jacob could wait. I needed to hunt now. I stood up and said quickly, in as few breaths as possible, "Haven't hunted. Need to. Now. Scent…"

I forced the words out, bolting upright and heading for the door, stopping only when I heard "WAIT!"

My body quivered but I stopped short, one hand on the doorknob, the other covering my nose and mouth.

"Will you come back?" Her voice was so full of desperation that I again mentally kicked myself for ever having left her in the first place. I nodded quickly.

"Promise?"

I nodded again, and then I ripped the door open and raced out into the night.

I tore through the trees, having no idea where I was going, but not really caring at the moment. As long as I was far away from Bella's scent, anywhere was fine with me.  
I have no idea how long I kept going, but at some point I drew myself up against a tree trunk and took a deep breath, the first I had dared to take since I left the house. I was greeted with the familiar scents of trees, woodland creatures, and the general stillness of the forest. I sighed heavily and let my body sink down until I sat at the base of the tree trunk. Burying my head in my arms, I took in gulps of Bella-free air. I felt worse than I had felt in a long time.

To be feeling that strongly…to be having to force myself from lunging for the throat of the girl I loved, that was not normal. Having no memory of my human life, being a vampire was all I knew how to be. It was who I was. Part of the job description was a constant thirst for human blood, one I had been learning to fight practically since the very first memories of my waking. And until I had met Bella…for decades, I had gained nearly unwavering control over my thirst. But she nearly made me forget who I was.

Her blood was the blood of an angel's, tempting me every moment I was around her, lingering in my nose even after distance was placed between us. Even as I walked in the door, expecting to find…what the hell had I been expecting to find? Bella's coffin in the living room with people gathered around it? Charlie sobbing uncontrollably on the kitchen table, fingering the gun at his belt?  
No…some part of me knew she was alive, had to get to her. Because her blood smelled sweeter than the blood of any human I had ever met. No…because I owed it to Edward. _NO…_I growled inwardly, it was not him. Another voice said it then, even though I really didn't want to think of it right now.

_You came because you are hopelessly in love with __Isabella Swan__._

I bit down on my lip. Yes, I was in love with her. But even through all that, even though I had felt such intense relief to find her standing in her living room, some part of me had still wanted to tear her throat out.

I squeezed my eyes shut tightly.

_Monster__._

I felt my body shake.

_Go on monster, cry if you can._

That strange tingling returned behind my eyes.

_CRY!_

I'd seen people do it thousands of times. But I wasn't like them. My body stopped shaking and the tingling gently faded into nothing. I stood up now; I had to hunt. I had to return to Bella before she thought I'd disappeared again.

**A/N: Voila! There you have it, chapter 1. I just want to get a bit of feedback before posting chapter 2, so reviews would be immensely immense. Love ya'll! :D **


	2. Chapter 2: Couldn't Stay Away

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! I'm really glad that people seem to like the beginning and are adding this story to their alerts. I present to you: Chapter 2.**

**Disclaimer: No, a miracle did not occur in the last 24 hours that granted me the rights to Twilight, nor did I magically obtain Stephanie Meyer and implant my brain into her body, so Twilight is still not mine. :( This story, however, is. :)**

Chapter 2: Couldn't Stay Away

The Swan residence was not a particularly spectacular dwelling by any stretch of the imagination. Set back from the road a bit, it looked like any other house one might encounter on any road in the country. Chief Swan, never one for decorations, had done nothing to the house that might distinguish it from the others in town, at least not to a normal passerby. But the house drew me like a magnet; pulling, calling. Even as I stood miles away, hunting with a vigor that I rarely showed, wanting desperately to quiet my internal storm with blood…even then, I felt it. I couldn't understand why I felt that it was literally impossible to stay away, why my instincts drew me back to the house like a moth to a flame. _Bella is not my mate. These feelings are not normal…_though I told myself these things, I found myself succumbing to the gravity of the place, moving ever closer to it as I hunted. When at last the vampire within me was satisfied, I returned. Charlie may not be one for decorations, but this was the one house that I never wanted to change. The recent addition of his daughter was quite enough for me.

I stood outside the front door, listening to the sounds within.

Charlie was still gone, so all I heard downstairs was the faint hum of the refrigerator. Upstairs, paper ruffled momentarily as the page of a book was turned, followed by a small sigh. I took a deep breath, faintly detecting Bella's scent as I did so. My body trembled, though more from the desire to have her in my arms than the desire to suck her blood. I had just gorged myself; I doubted I would be hungry for quite awhile.

As I stood on the porch alone with my thoughts, desire started to turn into a burning need. Still, I hesitated. The disgust I had felt with myself earlier lingered, and I knew I could not put Bella at risk like I had done before. Though my mind thought these things, my body moved of its own accord, and I found myself perched on the branch outside of her window a moment later.

She was lying on her bed, wearing only a tank top and shorts, staring at the paperback in her hand with a blank look on her face. I got the distinct impression that she wasn't reading a single word of it. A moment later, her head flew to the window and met my gaze.

Smiling a smile so beautiful it could have made my heart race, she dropped the book and threw herself off of the bed, standing before the window and carefully pushing it open, sticking her head out.  
"I was afraid you wouldn't come back…"

I smiled back lightly, "Oh, so I could give you the opportunity to jump off of more cliffs for fun?"

A dull red crept across her cheeks and she frowned, turning her head away from me. The beautiful sight of her blushing stirred something deep within me as I moved to sit on the windowsill. Her gaze slowly turned back to mine and I reached a hand out, taking her face in my hand and giggling.

She giggled right back. I nearly gasped in shock at seeing the life in her eyes, the pain in them still evident but momentarily forgotten in light of the joy. Joy at seeing me. I could have stayed like that forever, sitting on the windowsill with my hand on her cheek, staring into her eyes…but her gaze dropped and she moved to wrap her arms around me, clinging to me desperately. "Don't you ever disappear like that again…"

I returned her tight hug, being very careful not to crush her. It was then that I noticed the smell.

_What on EARTH…_

She smelled like dog. No, dogs smelled better than that. I took a deep sniff, which she picked up on. I felt her body freeze against mine.

"No, it's alright…" I whispered reassuringly, taking another sniff. I knew it was, too, because that horrible scent was clouding hers with such force that even if I hadn't hunted in a month I'm sure I would not have been tempted. She relaxed a bit at my words, trusting me, waiting patiently for me to finish up my vampire moment and stop acting like a German Shepherd.

"You smell…really bad," I wrinkled up my nose and looked down at her hurt expression.

"What? First Jake and now you…" she sounded hurt.

_Jake._

She had mentioned him before, the one who had pulled her out of the water. The one who I hadn't seen in my vision.

She caught the change in my expression and looked at me curiously, "Alice?"

"Tell me about Jake."

She smiled again, like she had when I mentioned his name before, and I felt something strange as I watched her. Jealousy? _Oh whatever; now is really not the time._

"I've known him since we were kids and I would come visit Charlie. I hadn't seen him in forever, but after…" she skipped a beat, her smile fading. "After you guys left, I started hanging out with him again. He's been a really great friend to me and he understands me but…he's been acting so…unlike himself lately, it's been worrying me. He stopped by briefly while you were out hunting, he seemed mad about something, and he held his nose when he came in. He tried to be discreet about it, and when I asked him about it, he didn't say anything. It was the weirdest thing."

She seemed to be holding something back. "Bella, is there anything else I should know about him?"

She started and looked up at me, perhaps surprised by the fact that I could read her so well. "I…well…"

I blinked and waited patiently.

"…He's…kind of a werewolf."

A moment passed. I stared ahead and tried to process what she had just said. A werewolf.

"Ok…so let's review. The vampires in the area leave town to try and protect you, so you decide to start jumping off of cliffs for fun and hang out with werewolves?"

She lowered her head to stare at the floor, and I could tell that my words had hurt her. I sighed heavily. I wasn't mad at her, I was mad at myself for agreeing to Edward's stupid plan. Trouble followed Bella everywhere; if not in the form of a family of vampires, then in the form of werewolves or cliffs. It had been stupid of us to leave.

I pulled her into my arms and lifted her up, holding her close to me. She buried her head into my chest and I felt a warm wetness against my cool skin. I sat back onto the bed and gently ran my fingers through her hair, then echoed the thoughts in my head. "I'm not mad at you, Bella. I'm mad that I left you here alone, I'm mad that I thought it was the best thing for you when it clearly wasn't…I'm mad at myself for ever going through with a stupid idea like this."

Her body shook gently and the warmth spread against the fabric of my shirt. Acting on impulse, I carefully lifted her head up and watched the tears fall down her face for a moment. There was a kind of beauty in the way she cried, but it hurt at the same time; knowing that I was the cause of those tears. _No...he was_. I sighed internally and pressed my lips against her cheek, lingering for a beat longer than was necessary. I tasted the salt in her tears and pulled away, resting my forehead on hers as she gulped, trying to control her sobs. Finally she spoke.

"No, Alice. You meant well, I know you did…It killed me when you guys left, but…I know that you thought it was best for me and I'm sorry that I'm such a screw-up…but I promise you it isn't all bad, Jake's a good guy, he really is…if it wasn't for him…I mean I don't even know what I'd do, when you showed up I just…" she trailed off, now gaining control of her body. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply for a moment. My forehead was still against hers and I watched her closely.

So many emotions struck me when she spoke that I wasn't sure which one to feel. There was fear; fear that Bella had just admitted to trusting a werewolf, to have actually befriended one. Jealousy that she seemed so close to him. Overwhelming gratitude that he had saved Bella's life. Anger, yet again, for leaving her. Pain at seeing her cry like this. "It isn't your fault, Bella...none of it is. You aren't a screw-up. You did nothing wrong."

"I can't believe he did this to me," whispered Bella bitterly, new found strength echoing in her words. I could tell she wasn't talking about Jacob anymore.

I rubbed her back soothingly as angry tears flowed down her face, slowly filling with an overwhelming desire to rip my brother apart for the way he had hurt Bella. I would not let my anger show, though. As far as Bella knew, I had no real reason to be upset with him. "Do you want to talk about it?" I asked softly.

Her forehead pulled away from mine and she gazed out of the window. The anger displayed on her features looked so out of place, but she radiated a strength that was absolutely mesmerizing. I hadn't thought it was possible to look strong with tears streaming down your face, but then, I hadn't thought it possible to look beautiful with tears streaming down your face, either. Bella managed both at once.

"I never loved him," she said flatly, and I swear to god, a cage of butterflies just exploded in my stomach.

"Well…maybe a little bit, at first," she continued. "He was kind; he didn't act like most guys did. I felt weirdly drawn to him. I remember thinking constantly about how strange he was, how his skin was hard and cold, and do _not _get me started on those eyes," she looked at me then, her expression softening, "You have the same eyes. Liquid gold…" her voice trailed off.

I stared into her own warm brown eyes and wished with all of my heart that she could have met me before him. I was determined to memorize the way Bella looked right now, the way she was looking at me. That spark in her eye had returned now, blazing brightly as she held my gaze. I couldn't believe how much I had missed it.

"It was all so strange, so new, but I was so curious. I spent hours online doing research, trying to figure out what the hell he was. I was obsessed..." she chuckled nervously, "and once I found out, I wanted to find out more. I wanted to know everything. I was so caught up in what he was - in his beauty - that I forgot to sit back and ask myself if I really loved him…" she bit down on her lip, hard.

"I really hated the way he acted around me…I sometimes caught him looking at me like I was dessert or something," I bit back a growl at these words, "But…I was so drawn to him. I don't really know why, I just felt like I needed to be around him, around all of you. I told myself that all vampires would probably have the same reaction that Edward did to people they were close to. I'll never forget when I figured out the difference."

The smile she gave me was so warm that I thought it would heat up my granite skin and kick-start my heart again.

"When he brought me home, I was scared out of my mind, but not because I thought you guys would…eat me or something. I was afraid you all wouldn't like me because I'm a human."

"Bella…" I whispered.

"You have no idea how much better I felt when you ran down the stairs and hugged me immediately. Edward didn't hug me like that, ever. He was too afraid to. It caught me off guard, but in a good way. I felt like I'd known you for years instead of seconds. There wasn't anything new or strange about the friendship I had with you like there was with Edward…" She frowned a little.

"When he left…I felt like I had lost part of myself. It caught me off guard, really, because I didn't understand why I felt so drawn to him. He told me once that I was his singer…"

Her voice faded briefly and the world seemed to flicker, and for a few fleeting seconds I heard her heart thumping loudly in my ear. I blinked and shook my head vigorously, and the sound disappeared.

_What the?_

"…Actually, he used some Italian phrase that I forget…Alice? Are you ok?" I looked back at Bella for a moment and nodded slowly. I saw understanding flicker across her face and realized that she must have thought I had had a vision.

"Sorry…something odd just happened to my head…" I reached up and held my hand to my forehead, where a vague ache lingered. _I never get headaches. _

Bella frowned and shifted so that she was kneeling on the bed in front of me. She raised her hand to my forehead and held it there, concern written on her face. "Like a headache?" she asked softly.

"I don't get headaches, Bella," I replied, but my voice held no conviction.

She looked at me with confusion and absently ran a hand through my hair, distracting me momentarily. "Like what, then?"

"I…don't know. I've never had anything like that happen." I shook my head again, and the feeling faded into almost nothing. "There, it's gone now."

"That's weird…"

"Nothing to worry about. You're right; it's probably just a headache."

She didn't seem convinced, "You've been a vampire for nearly a century and you've never had a headache, why would you get one now?"

"I don't know…" I briefly thought back to the vision I had had of Bella jumping from the cliff. It had been so _strange_, much like the random pain in my head. In a century, I had never seen anything like I had in that vision, either. Maybe I was just slowly going insane. "It's alright though, it's gone now."

Bella nodded and shifted so that she was again sitting beside me, and I felt her head come to rest on my shoulder. "I wrote to you, you know…" she whispered so softly that I barely even caught it.

"You did?" I asked, gazing down at my lap.

She blushed again, looking a bit flustered. It was really cute…"Yeah. I e-mailed you a lot, but they never sent. I just felt a little bit better talking to you, even if you never actually got the messages."

I felt her idly fidget with the hem of her tank top, and I felt a wave of guilt wash over me, "I'm sorry I never got them…"

She laughed quietly, "It's fine. You're here now, and that's all that matters. Oh!" she said, sitting up a bit, "I was sort of curious, how did your trip go?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

_Horrible. Every moment I spent away from you was the worst form of torture. I wanted to scream and throw things and run back to you as fast as I could. I felt like I was an empty shell of utter nothingness- _

"Fine, thanks," I said, smiling. "It wasn't terribly eventful, but I _did_ get to spend a fair amount of time researching." _I had to find _something _to do to take my mind off of you…_

"Researching?"

I nodded, "That information you gave me last spring proved useful. I managed to find out a bit about my human life."

Bella looked up at me with wide eyes, "Oh wow, Alice, that's…wow! What did you find?"

I sighed heavily, and Bella quickly looked down. "I mean…sorry, I know it's sort of personal –"

"Oh no, Bella! I'm just…it's hard," I closed my eyes and recalled what I had learned, "My name was Mary Alice Brandon. I was born in 1901, and I had a sister…she has a daughter who's still alive. I really didn't manage to find much, just some old records from when I was admitted to the asylum," I hesitated, "and my gravestone."

"Oh my god…"

"The date on it matched the one on the admission sheet," I whispered softly.

Bella's arms were around me then, holding onto me tightly. I closed my eyes and inhaled her scent, firmly ignoring the raging temptation. Unable to resist completely, I hid my face in her neck, breathing shallowly now. "It's alright…" I muttered into her heated skin, "It wasn't a life I recognize as my own, anyway." _I'm glad I was turned,_ I thought, _just so that I could survive to be in her arms like this._

"Still…I'm really sorry, Alice," she murmured, "no one should ever be treated like that. Your visions are part of who you are."

I smiled into her neck before she continued softly, "And I'm glad you have them, too, because without them, you wouldn't have come back."

_Oh, Bella…_

I pulled away from her neck slowly and looked into her eyes, which lit up as she smiled at me, "Thank you, Alice. For coming back."

I leaned up and kissed her cheek lightly, giggling as my actions made her blush. "Couldn't stay away."

_No, really. I couldn't stay away. You have no idea._

Bella let out a laugh that morphed into a yawn halfway through. The sight was so adorable I wanted to pounce on her. So I did.

I sprang up from the bed and knocked her backwards, being very careful so that I wouldn't break my human. Her yawn quickly turned back into a giggle, "Stop! That tickles!"

I regarded my pinned victim curiously, tilting my head to the side. "It does?" I held her down gently, but firmly. I didn't want her to escape.

"Y-yeah," she stammered, her face coloring again, "I'm really ticklish."

"Huh…" I said, thinking about her words. I had heard of people being tickled, but I couldn't imagine how the mere act of touching someone's skin the right way could cause them to burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter. Humans were so _weird_!

"You can't be tickled, can you?" she asked, her smile fading. I just shook my head. The room was silent for a few seconds before I beamed down at my captive again.

"But YOU can!" I declared, running my fingers all over her body.

She laughed twice as loud at before and started thrashing around on the bed, "STOP IT!" she begged, "PLEASE!"

Another thirty seconds of cruel torment and I ceased hostilities, grinning down at Bella as she panted heavily. The beast in me purred with delight at having its mate pinned helplessly. I became acutely aware of her heartbeat, now beating rapidly, pounding louder, calling to me…

_Whoa. Mate? Careful!_

Slowly, I rolled off of her and lay beside her, smiling in an attempt to cover up the thoughts I'd just had. Bella was still a little too busy catching her breath to notice me just then, and after a minute, she rolled onto her side and hugged me tightly before breaking into another loud yawn.

I chuckled, "Bed time for the human."

"Shut up…" she muttered playfully, closing her eyes. I listened as the sound of her breathing slowed further, and I stroked her hair softly as she drifted off. Right before she fell into semi-consciousness, though, I heard her whisper my name softly.

"Yes Bella?"

"Promise…Promise me you'll be…here in the morning…"

I felt another brief flare of guilt and I gently kissed her forehead. _There is no way I'm leaving you again._

"Of course, Bella. I promise. Sleep well."

She sighed softly in content and closed her eyes. It was only when I was certain she was asleep that I leaned in to whisper "I love you," delighting in the gentle shiver elicited by my breath against her ear.

**A/N: Aww. **

**So I had something completely different for this chapter, but I basically looked at it and went, "This sucks." So I re-wrote it, and I think this one's much better. I think. x_x **

**Things are a bit slow, I know, but I promise good, good things soon :)**

**Sorry for any typos, I'm re-reading each chapter about 6 times before posting them, but some things do manage to slip through. NINJA TYPOS. D:!**

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed, and review! Review! It's kind of pathetic how happy they make me, and I welcome any comments you may have. Thanks! **


	3. Chapter 3: You've Stopped Singing

**A/N: More reviews make my soul very, very happy. ^^**

**Sooo due to the fact that I gave Chapter 2 a major face-lift, this one now needs a face-lift. In fact, most of my chapters now require face-lifts. Just call me Demon of the Plastic Surgeries. **

**...That was lame. I'll shut up and get to the disclaimer now.**

**BIG SHINY DISCLAIMER (I know it's not really big and shiny, but use your imagination): I don't own Twilight. Which means I don't own Alice. This fact makes me cry and scream and pull my hair out on a daily basis. Because who the hell WOULDN'T want to own Alice?**

Chapter 3: You've Stopped Singing

The light of a bright moon filtered through the window, falling across the face of the girl I felt so driven to protect. She was in my arms still, though I was surprised that she hadn't rolled in the night since I couldn't imagine that lying against a body as cold and hard as mine could possibly be comfortable for her. But she had lain in almost perfect stillness, her face a beautiful picture of peace as she slept soundly. She looked like an angel lying in my arms…no. Angels were not this beautiful.

I sighed very softly, being careful not to disturb Bella. I wasn't sure what I was going to do now. There was my family to worry about; now that my secret was out, what were they going to do? Where they going to be mad? Would they side with Edward and demand that _all_ of us stay away from Bella? Would they not understand that, for me, staying away was now a physical impossibility?

The werewolves were also on my mind. Bella was close to them, but I had absolutely no idea where I should stand on that one. I knew without even having to think that, had Edward been here instead of me, he'd be doing everything in his power to make sure that she never saw them again. But…who was I to judge them? I'd never even met one face-to-face. And if this Jacob Bella spoke of had actually dived into the churning surf and saved her from her death…well, I should at least give him a chance, right? Though I'll admit, I hate the fact that I can't seem to see him in my visions. I do not like being blind. At all.

Last, but certainly not least, was Bella herself. There was absolutely no denying it: I was in love with her, with my whole entire dead heart. It was crazy, cruel, and unbelievable, but it was true. I wasn't sure if she returned my feelings at all; the future was blurring itself in my mind's eye, which left me unnerved. _What the hell is wrong with me lately?_

"Alice…" muttered Bella softly, a gentle smile ghosting her lips. I glanced down at the sleeping human in my arms and any worry I may have had vanished instantly. I brushed away the hair that had fallen over her eyes and took a deep, unnecessary breath to clear my head.

I couldn't go back to my family. I wasn't ready to face Jasper after the cruel way I had suddenly broken off a sixty-year relationship, and there was no way I could look at Edward when he now knew of my feelings for Bella.

_Snooze you lose, big brother. _

That wasn't very fair of me, but I still blamed him for making us leave in the first place.

I sighed, knowing full well I'd have to stay here, far away from the rest of the family, at least until the heat was off. Besides, there was no way I was leaving Bella. Not again.

As I watched her in my arms, I began to wonder what it must be like to sleep. I had no memories of sleeping or dreaming, and the concept had interested me for decades. I watched my human as she began to shiver slightly, clutching at my blouse. Her expression changed to one of fear. "A-Alice…" she whispered again, her voice more desperate now, "don't go…"

Her frightened words could have broken my heart. She was dreaming of me. I moved to comfort her, but froze halfway through the motion, my hand hovering in the air between us. Something was coming.

I scanned the future, but it had suddenly disappeared. That had to mean…

I turned my head and glanced out the window, taking a deep sniff.

_Dog. _

My entire body tensed as I picked up the sound of something running through the trees toward the house. I was barely aware of my body moving into a defensive crouch, hovering over Bella. I heard a loud knock on the front door, and a boy yelling for Bella to answer. I growled instinctively, making Bella stir. I listened as the door opened and someone entered, pounding up the stairs.

"Bella!" called the voice.

"Hmmm?" muttered Bella sleepily, easing her eyes open, "Alice?"

I hadn't even realized that I now stood crouched between Bella and her bedroom door, "It's alright," I muttered, "I think it's only your dog."

"What?"

"Bella!" the bedroom door flew open, revealing a tall, tan boy with an incredibly unpleasant odor. He wore only a pair of black shorts, and he looked at me, enraged.

"You!" he cried, his words coming out as a ferocious growl. "Why did you come back?" He took a step towards me, and I returned his growl, not moving from my defensive position.

"Jake!" yelled Bella, sliding off of the bed. "What are you doing here?"

His eyes flickered to her for the briefest instant before settling back on me, "What am _I_ doing here? What is _she_ doing here?"

I could see him shaking in front of me, and since I really did _not_ want to fight a werewolf, I decided to try and calm him down, "It's alright, dog," I spoke through clenched teeth, "I came back to protect Bella."

"_Protect Bella?_" he roared, "haven't you 'protected Bella' enough already?" His words hurt, but I didn't let it show.

"Jake, please," said Bella, her voice shaking slightly, "calm down. Alice is only here to help me," she took a few steps toward him, and I forced myself to relax my defensive stance. Jake's glare did not soften.

"I don't trust her," he said, turning to Bella. "I thought you wanted nothing to do with them…" his voice now sounded slightly hurt, and Bella took another step towards him.

"Jake, she's not the one who broke my heart. None of the others are here,"

"But you let _her _in? God, what the _fuck_, Bella? I knew something smelled off when I came around here earlier, but I couldn't be sure because I'd never smelled one of them with my new nose," his head snapped back to me, and he sneered, "Now, I've got your scent, bloodsucker."

I fought back a growl, but discreetly pulled a waft of his scent into my nose. It wasn't pretty, but it sure was memorable. _And now I've got yours,_ I thought, remembering my earlier promise to myself to give this boy a chance. _Just in case._

"Jake…listen! I need Alice right now, she's not him, and you _know_ that! She's not going to hurt me…she wouldn't dream of it. Jake, she's different."

Jake opened his mouth to speak (or yell), but he was cut off by the sound of the phone ringing on Bella's dresser. Since he was the closest, he snatched up the receiver and growled, "Hello?"

Bella bit her lip as Jake's face twisted in fury, "No he's not here! He's at the fucking funeral!" He slammed the phone down and closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead with two fingers.

"Jake…who was that?" whispered Bella softly.

He didn't open his eyes, "It was that bloodsucking doctor."

As he spoke, the world went black and I felt the extremely unnerving sensation of slipping into a mind that did not belong to me.

* * *

_Dead. Dead. Dead._

The word echoed through my mind, though I refused to accept it. I couldn't. I had already expected as much, of course, but hearing Jacob say the word 'funeral' confirmed any doubt I may have had.

_Bella. Dead. _

What had I done? I had killed her. I had left her. Without me, she had taken her life. I should have listened to Alice. She had tried to warn me. What was it she had said? I tried to remember, calling up the memory...

"_Edward!" yelled Alice, anger twisting her normally delicate features as she stormed into my room. I winced at her tone. I should have known she'd see my plans. _

"_Now wait, please…" I began before she cut me off._

"_You want to _leave_? To_ protect her_?" she roared. "That makes no sense, Edward! She just got attacked by a tracker and you want to _leave her here?"

"_Alice, please! Let me explain!" I raised my hands defensively, trying to read her mind, but I received nothing. I took a step back and stared at her, feeling unnerved, but I managed to answer her, "Why did the tracker go after her in the first place?"_

_No answer._

"_What if we hadn't made it to the studio in time?" _

_Her expression softened slightly._

"_And at the party, when Jasper attacked her?" she opened her mouth to speak, but I didn't even need my gift to know what she was going to say, "Yes, I _know_ that it wasn't his fault, and I don't blame him for his instincts. But…Alice, I don't want her in danger. Of any sort. And ever since we've been here, she's seen nothing _but_ danger."_

_Her black eyes lost focus, and her mind suddenly revealed itself to me as if a barrier had just been shattered. I read the vision from her mind. _

_A wild , red-haired woman, stalking the family, waiting. It was only a short flash, but it was enough._

'Not Bella. I can't let them have Bella,' _she thought, her eyes slowly returning to gold. A strangled cry escaped her throat and she dashed towards the open window, land on the ground immediately and running off into the trees. Her mind closed itself again, quickly, and I picked up no more thoughts from my favorite sister. Watching her go, I felt a small part of myself die. I had almost been hoping that she would talk me out of it. But I had no choice now…_

I did have a choice, but I had taken the wrong one. And now she was dead, and I had nothing left. I should have listened to Alice. No matter what her feelings for Bella are, no matter how angry I was at her for feeling them, she had been right. And I had been...wrong. I had nothing left now.

Nothing but Italy. I knew what I had to do.

_I'm coming, Bella…_

* * *

I was screaming, though I didn't realize it until I felt hands on my shoulders, shaking my body roughly. "Alice! Please Alice, come back!" I recognized Bella's frantic tones and forced my eyes open.

"What the fuck?" Jake's voice reached me, sounding almost like he was frightened.

"She had a vision," explained Bella as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"A bad one…" I whispered, taking a few heavy gulps of air. There was no time to think about the fact that this vision had been irregular too, since I had experienced it through the mind of someone else.

I found the worried eyes of my human and stared into them, "Bella…Edward's going to Italy."

I watched as confusion flicked across her face, followed by horrified understanding, "Oh my god…"

"Huh?" said Jake stupidly.

I growled, "That wasn't Carlisle on the phone. That was Edward. You used the word 'funeral', and he took it to mean Bella's funeral, since I left the house in a rush when I had the vision of Bella jumping from the bluffs. He thinks she's dead now, and he's off to an ancient royal vampire family in Italy to go kill himself. _Thanks a lot." _My last words were heavily laced with venom and sarcasm. Jake blinked, looking a bit sick.

"Alice…we have to stop him!" Bella met my gaze and I nodded. Whether or not I was pissed at him, Edward was still my brother.

Jake took a few steps back towards the door, clearly very unnerved by the current turn of events. Bella turned to him, "Jake…please, tell Charlie I'll be back in a few days. Don't mention Edward."

"Um…"

"Jake, I can't let him do this!"

Jake swallowed and nodded, anger still evident in his eyes. He was still shaking as he turned towards the door and pounded down the stairs. Bella sighed and buried her head in her hands, "What have I done…"

I rubbed her back soothingly with one hand while I dialed the airline with the other.

* * *

_I just might be in love with this car,_ I thought as I zoomed down the road in the yellow Porsche 911 Turbo that I had just barrowed. Well, stole. No…barrowed without permission. That was it.

The whole situation gave me an eerie feeling of déjà vu, since I had just raced to Forks to stop _Bella_ from killing herself days previously. Unfortunately, I doubted this one was going to turn out to be a false alarm, since few people travelled to Italy to be ripped apart by a coven of ancient vampires for _fun._

The Italian countryside flew by at about 150 miles an hour, and Bella was clutching the seat as if it was her lifeline. Any other time, I would have thought this was hopelessly romantic. The fact that we were racing to stop my brother from committing suicide at the hands of the Volturi made it slightly less so.

"Can't you go any…" said Bella, trailing off at the end.

"Hmm?"

"I was going to say 'faster', then I realized that everything outside is a blur. Then I was going to say 'slower' until I remembered why we're here in the first place."

I bit my lip, edging the accelerator forward ever so slightly, "It's alright, Bella. We'll make it."

I fought to control the growing terror in my gut. In light of everything, it seemed horribly selfish of me to worry about what happened when Bella and Edward met again, yet there was plenty of room in my mind to worry about both the meeting and the suicide attempt.

_What's going to happen when she sees him? Will she run into his arms and beg him to take her back? _I wasn't sure if I would be able to stand the heartbreak that would cause me, but I knew that, for Bella, I would put on a brave face no matter what happened.

I discreetly glanced over at my beautiful passenger, sighing internally. She made no definite decisions, so I had no idea what she was thinking. I grit my teeth and introduced the accelerator to the floor of the car, earning a heartfelt "oh god!" from my human.

"It's alright, Bella. I won't hit anyone."

She didn't open her eyes, "I know."

I couldn't quite repress a grim chuckle. In the silence that followed, my thoughts once again turned to my brother. All the angry thoughts I'd had towards him up until this point now seemed to converge in my mind, making me feel horribly guilty. I sincerely hoped that he wasn't too aware of just how angry I had been, that I hadn't played a part in his suicide mission. I hoped…I really hoped he knew that, despite everything, I still loved him. _My crazy, foolish brother. Angry or not, nothing could make me wish death upon you._ _If you commit suicide, I'll kill you._

Bella sighed softly beside me, her anxiety growing as time went on. I wanted to reach over and comfort her, but I knew that if I took my hand off the wheel and looked away from the road, I'd probably only manage to freak the hell out of her. So I bit my lip and let the silence fill the car.

"I'm sorry…" I finally whispered, so soft I was surprised when she turned her head.

"For what?"

I glanced over at her briefly, "This is my fault. I shouldn't have stormed out like that when I had that vision of you, I shouldn't have gotten mad at him like I did. And I should have called him first thing when I realized you were still alive." On the plane to Italy, I'd told her how I had received the vision and the events that followed, leaving out, of course, his discovery of my feelings for her and the bit about Jasper. She knew that, as far as the rest of the family was concerned, she was dead. And I had been so caught up in her _not_ being dead that I hadn't remembered to pick up a damn _phone_ and pass along the rather important piece of information.

My god, I was a fail psychic.

"It's not your fault…" she whispered softly, leaning closer to me, "It's _my_ fault for jumping off of the damn cliff in the first place."

"It's my fault for leaving and making you jump," I countered.

"It's my fault for being a danger magnet and driving all of you away," she lowered her head.

"Oh Bella…you didn't drive us away," I looked at her for as long as I dared before turning back to the road, "we wanted to protect you. We just didn't manage to do it in the right way."

Bella smiled at me, "Promise me you won't run us off the road…"

"Promise," I grinned as she leaned over the seat to hug my quickly.

"Thank you, Alice…" she said as she leaned back in her seat.

"For what?" I asked softly.

"For coming back. For watching out for me. For…saving me," her last words were a quiet whisper that I wasn't sure if I was supposed to have heard or not.

"I told you, Bella. I couldn't stay away." I tried to keep the burning longing I felt out of my voice. I glanced around at the countryside and scanned the future quickly; my mind served me better than any navigational system ever could. "We're 20 minutes out of Volterra."

Bella sat up and looked out as the buildings of a distant city came into view. "Can you go any faster?" she asked nervously. I glanced down at the accelerator, which was pressed so hard against the floor that it was making a dent.

"Umm…no," I answered, noticing that the needle said we were going about 180 miles an hour. _Damn, I love this car. _"We'll make it, Bella."

She only nodded absently, her mind still invisible to me in its indecision, and continued to watch the distant city.

* * *

As we drove through the crowded streets of Volterra, Bella grew more and more restless.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" she yelled out the window to an old lady that was trying to cross the street in front of the car. She earned an angry litany of choice Italian swear words and a flip of the bird for that one. _Italian grandmas. Do not piss them off._

I looked up at the large stone clock in the center of the square and read 11:59. I stopped breathing.

Edward was planning on stepping out into the square at noon…

"Bella, get out of the car and follow me, now!" I yelled, throwing open the door and taking off through the square at a pace that was fast, but not fast enough to give me away to the huge crowd of humans that was gathering. I could feel Bella behind me, trying to keep up.

The clock started to strike twelve and my heart sank. I looked around, but I didn't see Edward anywhere…I didn't see anything at all…I didn't…see…

The ground came rushing up to me as I collapsed, hitting the ground hard.

* * *

_He was sitting on a cliff, the same cliff she had jumped off of. He was staring out onto the water with a thoughtful expression on his face. He was dressed in a tuxedo, shiny black shoes, and his hair looked almost neat. He looked as if he was ready to attend a gala. _

_As I watched, he stood up and took a few steps towards the edge, looking down. What on earth was he doing? Seconds ticked by before he spoke._

"_I need you to understand something," he said, his tone emotionless. "For decades, I have been alone. I watched my family grow and I felt some sort of comfort in that…in all of you. But this is not natural, Alice. I should have died on that bed a hundred years ago. I should have died like my mother did. Like my real family did." _

I don't like where this is going.

"_I want you to know that you're the one I felt I could identify most with. In all my years as a vampire, I always felt a void inside of me, as if something was missing. I imagine you must feel something of the same, never knowing your human life."_

That hurt…

"_You made me happier than anyone else in the family could, Alice. You made me happier than anyone could, just because you were kind and understanding. Your energy was infectious. You always were my favorite sister, little freak."He smiled gently, but it didn't quite reach his eyes._

"_I drew much of my strength and inspiration from you…"_

Until Bella.

"…_Until Bella. I love her, Alice. And I made a horrible mistake by leaving her. But…now I guess I know that we were never meant to be. I want you to be with her, Alice."_

What?

"_Understand that I can't spend another second here."_

No…

"_I will do what history would have had me do a century ago."_

Stop it…

"_Die."_

Why can't I reach him?

"_Take good care of her, Alice. It's all I ask."_

_I watched in horror as he pitched himself from the bluffs._

* * *

When I opened my eyes, a crowd of humans was surrounding me, looking worried and speaking rapidly in Italian. I breathed heavily and shook them off, standing up and looking around for any sign of Bella or my brother.

He was in the corner, shirtless, held in the shadows by two guards. Bella was on the ground in front of him, crying. I ran to them, kneeling down beside her and looking up at Edward. His eyes looked sad as he saw me.

_That vision…what on earth…_

There was no time to think of that. "Edward!" I cried out, "What are you doing?"

"I am glad to see you well, Bella. You too, for that matter," he said as he looked at me.

"Edward…" sobbed Bella, "why did you do this?" the guards were shoving him back into the shadows, clearly eager to get him into the palace. I assumed that they had seen him and stopped him before he could actually reveal himself.

He did not answer her, but instead kept looking at me. His black eyes seemed to see right into me, and I shivered, despite the heat.

"I knew it," he muttered, so soft and quick that I knew Bella couldn't hear him. I blinked in confusion, and he smirked slightly.

"Please, enjoy your stay in Volterra, both of you. I'm sure it will be much more pleasant than mine." As he said it, he broke into a smile.

"Damn straight," muttered the guard, "now get your ass inside, dead boy." He gave him another rough shove.

"All in good time, gentlemen," replied Edward. "Bella…I do hope you'll find it in your heart to forgive me."

Bella looked up and suddenly rushed at him, but the guard stood between them, hissing at her. I stood up and hissed right back. "Is that all you're going to say to me?" she cried, her body trembling, "after everything you've done to me, after everything you've done to _yourself_, you're just going to ask for _forgiveness_?" A tone of desperation crept into her voice as she stared at him, more tears slipping down her cheek. "Why are you doing this, Edward? I'm not dead…look, I'm still here, I'm breathing, I'm alive!"

His eyes blazed gold for a moment and he stared at her for several seconds. He looked completely entranced before he took a long blink, his smile returning, though seeming far sadder than it had before.

"But you've stopped singing."

My sight faded again, blurring the figures in front of me. I fought to remain standing as my knees trembled, threatening to give way. A heart pounded furiously for several beats in my ear, its thumps sounding frantic and angry. I blinked rapidly, dispelling the strange images as the world shifted, hastily re-focusing itself. Edward was staring at me, his eyes darkening.

Bella's voice reached me, sounding thoroughly confused, "What are you talking about?"

He offered no answer.

The guards, thoroughly sick of this game, grabbed him roughly and pulled him back into the alley.

**A/N: Homagawd. The tensionnnn. **

**I promised plot, and plot ye shall receive. Stupid, suicidal, emo Edward. Actually I take that back. I feel for the poor bastard. Sigh.  
**

**Just in case there was any confusion about the visions: The first vision Alice had was of Edward re-living a memory in his head. The second was of him jumping off of a cliff like Bella did.  
**

**As always, review! Review! If you do it, Alice will give you a kiss! (Not really, 'cause she's all mine. I mean Bella's. Damn.) **

**Edit: I'm having an issue with page breaks. If you get repeated alerts, I apologize. Still getting used to this and all. Dx  
**


	4. Chapter 4:The Ancients

**A/N: I've currently been posting a chapter a day, and while I'm going to try to keep that up, I'm sure how long it'll last for. I'll never go more than a few days without an update, though, so don't worry :P**

**Disclaimer: Until I make enough money to hire a team of a bazillion lawyers, I do not own Twilight.**

Chapter 4: The Ancients

My stomach sank as my brother disappeared from view. I couldn't bring myself to believe that this was really happening; that Edward was really being dragged to his death.

"Edward!" Bella and I called at the same time, running into the alley after him. But before we could make it, the guards reached a large metal door and stepped through it, closing it behind them. I grabbed the handle and pulled as hard as I could, but it didn't budge.

"Alice, do something!" yelled Bella frantically.

I growled softly as I glared at the door, "Stand back, Bella."

I backed up a few feet before pouncing at the door, attacking the hinges. Nothing happened.

_What the _hell _is this thing made out of?_

I pulled back my fist and punched it, then yelped loudly and jumped backward. That had actually_ hurt_. I looked at the door and my jaw dropped when I saw that I hadn't even made a dent in it. The Volturi think of everything. I turned up and down the alley to look, but this was the only door around.

"What are we going to do?" whispered Bella. I looked up and saw a window, getting an idea.

"Bella, can you get on my back?" The human blinked at me in confusion until I gestured to the window above my head.

"Can you do that?" she asked incredulously, eying the incredible height of the window. She looked at me and I nodded, "I'm more worried about you being able to hold on," I tilted my head to the side and looked at her with concern, re-thinking my idea. It was a really high window..."Maybe I should go in alone."

Bella shook her head quickly. "No, Alice. This is my fault and I have to help fix it." I opened my mouth to argue, but I saw the determination in her eyes and thought better of it.

"Please, Bella...hold on."

She nodded, tightly wrapping her arms around my shoulders. I lifted her up effortlessly, and she secured her legs around my waist. I dug my fingers into the stone wall, making deep dents as I climbed higher. The feeling of Bella clinging to me desperately was making it a little hard to concentrate, but I managed.

_Good thing they didn't think to vampire-proof the walls, _I thought to myself.

Bella groaned and buried her face in my hair. "Don't look down, Bella," I whispered softly.

"Too late," she replied.

As we climbed higher, my thoughts again shifted to my strange mind. The vision lingered, stirring up a million questions. The thought of a fall from that height actually killing my brother was laughable, but that hadn't been what had unnerved me. The symbolism was chilling, and _since when_ did I have visions that used _symbolism?_ It was like English class. In my head.

A minute later, my fingers were digging into the window sill, and I carefully climbed in. Bella didn't make any move to get off of my back, and I turned to speak over my shoulder.

"We can move faster if you stay on my back," I said, feeling her nod slowly.

I tore down the hallways as fast as I could. I found my way through the confusing castle by deciding to take every path I saw and reading the future with every decision. When I saw Edward's face, I knew to head in that direction. Bella clung to me the whole time, her fingernails digging into my hard shoulder.

I turned right down a hallway and saw the large stone doors of the throne room in front of me. Receiving a mental picture of Edward, I reached the doors instantly and threw them open, stepping out into the large, circular room with three thrones in the center. Three incredibly old looking vampires sat in them. Standing before them was Edward. He had his back to us, and as I watched, I saw his body shake with a very small sigh.

"Well, well, well," said the man in the middle throne, standing up slowly. "What a treat this is! It's so rare that we get company, and here we are with two visits in one day! Welcome, welcome," he said, gesturing theatrically as he did so. He wore a long, flowing robe and looked considerably more energetic than the other two vampires sitting on either side of him, one of whom looked as if he fancied a very long nap. The other had a permanent scowl etched into his face.

My attention was quickly drawn back to the one who had stood. He was intensely pale, even for a vampire, which was only intensified by the curtain of long black hair that framed his ancient face. "I am Aro."

"Edward…" whispered Bella as she looked at him over my shoulder, her tone sad. I noticed that she made no move to get off of my back.

Aro suddenly looked very offended, "Oh! I see, of _course_ you do not come for _us_," he took a few steps down from the throne and took a long look at all of his guests. "One of you has come because he wishes to kill himself, and the other two come to stop him, I presume. Does anyone _ever_ stop by to say 'hello' anymore? Just a simple little greeting, hmm? But of course not…no one respects their elders anymore, pity. Not unless they want something," his hard gaze settled on Edward, and his eyes flashed a dangerous crimson.

"You are young and very, very foolish. Your talents…" he stepped forward now, placing his ancient hand on Edward's cheek. Edward did not flinch or otherwise acknowledge the touch. I stiffened, remembering what Aro's gift was. The ancient vampire's head turned straight to me and his eyes narrowed, his expression looking almost confused. The look was gone a moment later, and he lowered his hand and glanced back at Edward. "Yes, you are _far_ too gifted to simply kill. What a pity that would be, what a terrible waste."

"He broke the rules, Aro," said the vampire on the right, "He was about to step out into the square and reveal himself in front of the humans. Punish him."

"Alice, do something!" Muttered Bella on my shoulder, but I was at a loss.

Aro's eyes blazed an even deeper crimson as he studied Edward, "Yes…"

I opened my mouth to speak, but someone beat me to it. "Now now, I'm sure we can work something out, gentlemen."

Two intense emotions struck me at once: confusion, and relief. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. _Thank god._

I turned over my shoulder to see Carlisle enter the throne room, looking as if he was coming to discuss the weather instead of to negotiate for his son's life.

Aro beamed broadly and stepped around Edward with his arms outstretched, "Carlisle! Oh, what a pleasant surprise. Have you come for a friendly greeting?"

Carlisle stopped beside me and rested his hand on my shoulder. I stared up at him, speechless. Why hadn't I known he was coming sooner? "Of course, dear friends," he nodded to Aro, and then to the other two, addressing each by name. "Aro, Caius, Marcus…it's been quite a while, and yet none of you have changed a bit," his smile was so flawless, so natural, that I felt my body instantly calm. Bella slowly slid off of my back, taking my hand and squeezing it tightly.

Edward glanced over his shoulder and stared at Carlisle. I saw a spark of anger flash in his golden eyes.

Aro chuckled, "I wish I could say the same for you, friend. But your young ones seem to enjoy causing trouble around here."

"Do they now?" replied Carlisle, still using a light conversational tone, "Well, I must apologize for my son's lack of self-preservation and the damage my daughter has done to one of your walls."

_Whoops._ If I could have blushed, I would have.

"Oh, it's quite alright," replied Aro with a wave of his hand, "Of course I do not blame _you,_ old friend. Although, it brings me much sorrow to say that I am going to have to kill your son, and possibly the human that your daughter has brought into my throne room."

Bella gasped and squeezed my hand tightly. I quickly moved to stand between her and the three vampires in the center of the room, growling dangerously, "You will not touch her!" Edward stared over his shoulder at us, a look of fear briefly flashing across his face.

Aro just laughed, "Well, she seems very protective of the little blood-bag." I snarled loudly, but Carlisle held up his hand.

"Calm, Alice." I relaxed slightly, not taking my eyes off Aro.

Carlisle now walked towards the center of the room, a friendly smile on his face, "I do understand that my son was on the verge of breaking a very old law, but I would like to point out that as of this moment, that law remains unbroken. And, I assure you, this girl is of no threat to our secret."

"Hmm…" Aro stared at Edward, appearing deep in thought. "You do have a point about the law, old friend…"

Edward finally exploded, "What do you mean he has a point? I was about to reveal myself to a crowd of humans! In your own city! You have to kill me!"

"Edward," said Carlisle, his voice full of power. The word seemed to hang in the air, reverberating off of the walls. In the silence that followed, I noticed Edward twitch once in discomfort. Neither of us were used to hearing our adoptive father use a tone of voice like that."I would like to speak with you in private, if I may." Edward blinked, his uncomfortable expression transforming into one of rage. "Aro, if that is at all possible?"

Aro tapped his index finger to his chin, deep in thought. "Well, you _were_ the only guest today who bothered to stop in for a friendly greeting. Youth can be so rude," he glanced at Edward, than at Bella and I. "Yes, I suppose I'll allow it. You may step out for a few moments. Although I am still very unhappy with the human in my vicinity, and I'm very eager to get it out of here."

I narrowed my eyes at Aro but said nothing. Bella suddenly found the floor very interesting.

Carlisle and Edward stepped out of the room, and I listened as their footsteps echoed through the hallway. Aro stared at me in fascination, but I pretended not to notice.

"Alice Cullen," he said softly, "the fortune-teller." His eyes gleamed with greed as he looked me over.

"I suppose you could call me that," I answered softly.

He chuckled, "I don't want you to think that it's only your brother's talents I value. On the contrary…you, my dear, have an extraordinary gift as well."

"Thank you," I said simply, inclining my head slightly. I knew full well that Aro wanted me as part of his guard. I also knew he was probably dying to touch me, since I had heard of his power to see into the mind of everyone he touched. He would want to know what I know, to see what I see.

"Ah, but we can discuss your talents later. At the moment, I'm very curious as to who this young girl is and why she's standing next to you, alive."

His last words sent a tiny shudder up my spine, but I knew that Bella had not seen it. I turned and met Bella's eyes, loosing myself for just a moment in the perfect pools of brown. I could tell she was a little bit afraid, and I squeezed her hand again for reassurance. I then turned back to Aro and said softly, "She is one of us."

The blonde vampire on his right – Caius - narrowed his eyes at us, anger coloring his sour features, "Ridiculous. She's a human," he dismissed with a wave of his hand.

"Hush, Caius," scolded Aro, and Caius grit his teeth in annoyance. Aro's eyebrows rose as he looked back and forth between Bella and I. "Really now?" he turned to his left and muttered softly, "Have you heard one like _that_ before?"

"Nope," answered Marcus, barely paying attention.

"They keep her alive! She's a human!" exclaimed Aro.

"Hmm, I hadn't noticed." He continued staring at the wall.

Aro turned back to us and straightened up, amusement coloring his features. "Well, that's certainly…interesting, Ms. Cullen –"

"But the law is very clear. She knows too much," interjected Caius, ignoring the disapproving sideways glance that Aro shot towards him.

I turned and glanced at Bella, who was now looking at Aro with a determined expression on her face. "I won't be human for long," she said simply.

My gut twisted into all sorts of shapes as I took in her words, surprised by them.

Aro smiled again, clearly very entertained. "Well now, isn't _that_ interesting...the human girl choosing the life of a monster to be with her friends. Oh, to be young again…" his gaze now seemed far off, and the room filled with silence.

A few moments later, he seemed to snap out of his reverie, "This is all very interesting, but I still think she knows too much about us."

"But-"

"However…I am willing to let her go free, provided that I am presented with some proof of your intention to turn her?" his eyes darkened as he looked at me.

_Might as well. _

I sighed and held up my right hand, releasing Bella's. I stepped forward and presented my hand to Aro, who stared at it as if it was a free meal. Slowly, he reached out his hand and grasped mine. His eyes grew distant again, and I received the distinct impression that I wasn't alone in my mind. It was a very unnerving thought, yet something about it seemed oddly familiar. After a few seconds, Aro looked over at Marcus and raised a questioning eyebrow. Marcus turned to him and nodded slightly, his gaze flicking towards Bella before it settled back onto the wall. Aro chuckled softly before turning back to me.

"Does she know?" he asked in a voice so quick that I knew Bella couldn't hear us.

"No," I replied, knowing he was referring to my feelings for her.

He grinned broadly, "Now _this_ is even _more_ interesting! I never thought that…well, I won't say anything. I'm far too interested in where this may go. You have your work cut out for you, Alice Cullen."

I blinked, mulling over his cryptic words.

"Very interesting!" he exclaimed loudly, his voice returning to a normal human speaking speed. "I very much enjoyed seeing your thoughts, Ms. Cullen. Especially the ones that haven't happened yet," he smiled devilishly. "Very well then, I believe that you will turn the human…I will want to meet her, of course…when she is standing among your family as an equal."

Caius scoffed loudly.

He took a step back and raised his head to stare at Bella, "Isabella Swan," Bella blinked in surprise as he spoke her name, "What a beautiful name. I look forward to meeting you as Isabella Cullen. Oh, and look, my guests return!"

I heard the sounds of Edward and Carlisle approaching and turned to watch them enter the room. Edward was staring at the floor, his expression unreadable. Carlisle had his hand on his son's shoulder, and once again wore his friendly smile.

"I thank you for letting me speak with my son, Aro. I do believe we're on the same page now. Can I trust that you agree with me, since no harm has been done?"

"Hmm…" Aro tapped his finger to his chin again, "alright. I really would hate to waste such talent, anyway. And congratulations, Carlisle, on your new edition to the family!"

Edward's eyes widened and Carlisle briefly looked over at Bella, "Thank you, Aro. I appreciate it. Alice, Edward, Bella? I do believe it's time we return home."

Aro frowned, "So soon?"

"I'm afraid so, Aro. My family is a bit scattered at the moment and I have a feeling I have a bit of work to do. It really was quite nice to see you again, old friend."

"You as well, Carlisle. We really must do this more often. I look forward to visiting Ms. Swan when she is one of us."

Carlisle smiled and turned, taking Edward with him. I quickly caught up to Bella and took her hand, very eager to be out of that room.

* * *

The four of us stepped out of the Volturi palace and into the shadowy, deserted alley. Edward walked in front of us and Bella walked behind. They seemed to be studiously ignoring each other. Carlisle and I were in the middle, speaking quickly and softly.

"You say your visions have been strange?" he asked with some concern.

I nodded slowly, trying not to portray how uneasy I was about that fact. "Yes…the one I had of Bella, when she…jumped," I had to force the word out of my mouth, "I experienced all five senses. I've never had a vision with any sense outside of sight or sound. But it was strange…" My brows knitted together as I tried to find the words to explain.

"Go on," Carlisle urged gently.

"Well…I have a theory, but I have no way of knowing if it's even close. Do you remember what the world looked like to you as a human, Carlisle?"

Carlisle blinked in surprise and stared ahead as we continued moving through the alley, his expression thoughtful. I briefly glanced back at Bella, and she smiled at me gently. I returned the smile before turning back to Carlisle, knowing that she wouldn't be able to hear us at the speed we were speaking.

"It was such a long time ago. The memories are dim and faded, the way a photo album might age, but…yes, vaguely. I remember the world was largely a stranger to me. I know that I had wretched eyesight, even for a human, and much of the world was blurry. I couldn't hear anything beyond my immediate surroundings, and I rarely, if ever, smelled anything at all." He cocked his head to the side and frowned, grasping for memories that seemed just beyond his reach. "It's strange. My vampiric memory can recall just about anything I've ever experienced during the last three centuries of my existence. Yet my human years are quite muddled."

I felt a brief pang in my chest as he spoke, knowing exactly what he was talking about. My memory was flawless as far as the last ninety years were concerned, but if I tried to go any farther back, it was like hitting a mental brick wall. I sighed in frustration and Carlisle looked at me, his eyes full of sympathy, "I'm sorry, Alice. I could try to help you again, if you wanted." Several times in the past few decades I had gone to him, asking for help in recovering the human memories that I knew lay right beyond the brick wall in my mind. Several times he had tried everything he could think of: hypnosis, triggering, age regression…nothing had ever given me even an inkling of the life I had lived before I was turned. It was so frustrating to be able to read the secrets the future held, and yet know so little of my past. That was one of the reasons I was so terrified that my visions were warping themselves.

"Perhaps, but not at the moment. I'm more concerned about what humans in general experience." I recalled his earlier description of his human senses and nodded slowly. "Yes…that sounds about right. While I experienced other senses in the vision, all of them seemed dull, muted somehow. I smelled the salt from the sea and little else. I heard everything as if the sounds were miles away, yet I was standing right there…" I trailed off, my eyes narrowing as I realized something, "That's another thing; I almost seemed to have form in the vision. It wasn't just like I was watching it happen, it was as if I was _there_, though Bella didn't seem to notice me."

"Hmm…" Carlisle pondered over my words before offering, "If you had form, that may help explain why you experienced more than the usual senses, though it wouldn't explain why they seemed…almost human, you say?"

I nodded, "I think so. Like I said, I don't have much to go by, but your description sounds about right."

"What of the other visions?"

I glanced ahead at Edward. He seemed to be sulking, but that was typical of him. He moved with his head slightly slumped and he seemed to almost be dragging his feet. I knew that he had heard everything Carlisle and I had said, but he showed no indication that he was avidly listening or that he cared.

"I'd rather discuss those with both you and Edward, if you don't mind."

Carlisle followed my gaze. Edward didn't acknowledge my words at all, so I figured that conversation would have to happen later. We were getting closer to Carlisle's Mercedes, which had been neatly parked in a shadowy spot at the end of the alley.

"Fair enough. Is there anything else you want to tell me?" I caught the instantaneous glance he shot at Bella, but I wasn't ready for that one yet.

"Have you ever gotten headaches?"

He blinked, clearly thrown off by my words. "I...Well, no. Never," he looked at me suspiciously, "Why do you ask?"

I shrugged, "I've been getting headaches over the past few days."

"Are they triggered by visions?"

I considered that carefully before rejecting it. "I don't think so, they seem to happen at random."

"I don't believe I've ever heard of a vampire getting a headache," he speculated.

I sighed heavily, "Yes, well, I seem to be losing it all over the place. I can't believe I didn't see you coming to Italy."

"You didn't see me?" he asked, incredulous.

I shook my head, "_And_ I apparently can't see werewolves," I groaned loudly, "Just keep poking holes in my shattered psyche, _please_," I mumbled to no one in particular.

Carlisle patted my shoulder sympathetically as we reached the Mercedes. "I promise you, Alice, we'll do all we can to help you when things calm down a bit."

I smiled at him gratefully, appreciating his care and concern, "Thank you so much, Carlisle…it looks like I'll need it."

Bella stepped up beside me then and I switched back to normal speaking speed as I turned to her. She shot me a desperate and pleading look, then glanced at Edward briefly. My heart sank until I noticed that she seemed to be standing behind me almost defensively, putting as much room between the two of them as possible, and her message then became clear: _Keep me away from him._ I nodded slowly and slid into the backseat, gently pulling her in next to me. She smiled gratefully as she buckled her seatbelt.

Carlisle got behind the wheel and Edward flopped into the passenger seat, staring out the window. The awkward silence that settled was thick, but Bella rested her head on my shoulder as Carlisle started to thread through the thick crowd, making me feel infinitely better. I focused on the sound of her breathing until we could find a hotel.

* * *

Nothing out of the ordinary happened as we drove, finally pulling up to a fancy-looking luxury hotel.

Checking in went smoothly as Carlisle booked a suite and brought us all upstairs.

Everything was fine when we first entered the room and glanced around, taking in the expensive décor.

It wasn't until Carlisle politely excused himself and Edward glared at Bella with fury in his eyes that all hell broke loose.

**A/N: Oh. Cliffy. Be afraid. **

**For the record, I love Aro. He's just so fun to write. **

**Don't worry, Edward's not going to be hogging the spotlight forever. I don't like him nearly enough for that. (As you can see, neither does Alice, and I'm a slave for Alice's desires.) I just need him to tie up some loose ends. **

**Love it? Hate it? As always, review and tell me what you think! **


	5. Chapter 5: Tears of an Angel

**A/N: This chapter was hard to write simply because I developed a really bad case of writing ADD. I hate when I do that. Remind me to get more sleep tonight.**

**I'd like to thank everyone who's reviewed so far, because I'm not sure if I've done that already or not. You guys are really what keep me going with this, and I appreciate all of your kind words :)**

**Disclaimer: If I **_**did**_** own Twilight, I'd be chilling in a giant mansion surrounded by a lot of pretty girls that all looked suspiciously like Alice Cullen. Because I'm writing this in my boring little house at 7am with only my snoring parents to keep me company, I'd consider that pretty damn clear evidence that I do not, in fact, own Twilight.**

Chapter 5: Tears of an Angel

"_What are you doing here?_" bellowed Edward, shaking with anger. A furious growl ripped through the room, and it took me half a second to realize that it had been mine. Instinct had forced me to react defensively against Edward for raising his voice at Bella. The two of them stared at me, Bella with confusion and Edward with rage. Slowly, I reined in my inner beast. _Chill, _the voice in my head hissed, and I relaxed my stance.

"Sorry…instinct," I muttered nervously, and Bella's expression turned to one of understanding.

"And _you…_" he whispered venomously, "Why did you _bring_ her here?"

It was Bella's turn to defend _me_ now. "Oh, so you thought that when we heard you were going to kill yourself, we'd shrug and sit on the floor singing Kumbaya?" I was surprised by the anger in her tone, "Maybe we fucking _care_ about you, Edward! Maybe we didn't want you to do this to yourself!"

It was obvious how upset she was; Bella only cursed when she was intensely pissed.

"You should have let me!" he roared. "It's _my_ life, Bella. Not yours, not Alice's. _Mine!_"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and from the looks of it, neither could Bella. "Are you _really_ that selfish? First you fucking rip my heart out, disappear without a trace, then you expect me to just sit back and watch you _kill yourself?_"

"_I was supposed to die a hundred years ago!_"

"I don't give a _shit!_" she glared at him, her brown eyes instantly hardening. "You were saved, Edward. You were fucking _saved._ For a _reason!_ So don't give me that crap!"

He stared at her, his features now looking pained. His next words came out in a choked whisper, "I thought so, too."

Her hard glare did not soften, and although her voice lowered a few decibels, her tone was still scorching. "Why do it then? Why end your life? It's bad enough that you run away, decide I'm worthless, and then kill yourself because you think _I'm_ dead. You fucking lost the right to care what happened to me the second you decided to run away and never look back."

The look on his face was agonized, as if her words were daggers, but she did not stop.

"If you really _cared_…you would have fucking come back to me. Like _Alice _did. I didn't see her prancing off to kill herself. She came _back_, unlike you. Hell, she never even _wanted_ to leave. But you? You leave, dragging your whole family away from me, and don't even bother to double-check the fact that I'm fucking _alive._ You race of to kill yourself instead. And then…" her voice broke and she took a deep breath, then continued, "You see me, alive. And you don't even _care_. You don't even stop to think about the fact that you're _hurting_ the people who just got on a plane and flew to Italy to _save. Your. Life._" Her last words were full of a power that nearly made _me_ frightened.

"Bella…" he was shaking now, his face a perfect mixture of anger and despair.

"No. I don't even want to hear what you have to say." A single tear trickled down her cheek, but it did nothing to make her less menacing as she stared at the man she had loved. i felt my gut twist at the sight. "You don't deserve that."

"I _did_ care," he said, fighting to keep his voice even, "I wanted to pro-"

"Protect me?" she interjected. "Yeah, great. Next time you want to '_protect me_', try not to rip my heart out in the process. Actually, on second thought, next time you want to '_protect me_', don't."

"I loved you, Bella…I loved you, so much."

"Just shut up." She turned and stormed into one of the bedrooms, slamming the door behind her with an echoing 'THWACK' that made Edward flinch.

I took a long blink, trying to process what I'd just seen.

Slowly, I turned to meet Edward's gaze. He was staring at me like I was a nefarious Disney villain who'd just stolen his lollipop. "Thanks a lot, little freak."

"Stop. You know I can't help how I feel about her."

He grit his teeth, "That's the _point!_ You can't help how you feel about her!"

I blinked, confused. He was agreeing with me? This wasn't like him…

"Oh my god…" he grabbed fistfuls of his hair and looked at me now like I was the biggest idiot in the world, "Don't you _get it?_"

"I…what?" I took a step back, alarmed. Was he going insane?

"Alice…she's not my singer," he whispered, his voice trembling as he spoke, "She's yours. It's _la tua cantante._"

It was like someone had just flicked a light switch on in my mind. From the next room, Bella's heart throbbed, now sounding as if it was coming from inside my head. Every other sound – the hum of the mini-fridge, the traffic from the streets, the sporadic breathing of my brother – faded into nothing, replaced by the rhythmic, echoing heartbeat in my mind. My eyes shot instantly to the door of the room into which Bella had just disappeared, narrowing like a laser beam. As if I could bore through it, somehow…see straight through the obstruction barring me from the girl, if I could just _focus_ hard enough...

I wasn't aware I was growling until I felt a hand on my shoulder.

My entire body tensed as the heartbeat that seemed to hold me to the Earth faded into the background. Without even looking, I struck my assailant roughly, forcing him back several feet as I hissed loudly.

It took me several seconds to come back to myself and realize that it had been Edward that I had forced off of me. He was now looking at me warily, holding his hands up in surrender. I relaxed slightly, throwing one last glance at Bella's door. _La tua cantante. _The words stirred something deep within me that I couldn't even begin to understand, yet at the same time, they managed to make perfect sense. Like the final piece had been added to a puzzle, a piece that I didn't even know was missing, yet I couldn't decipher the final picture.

I shook my head quickly and apologized to Edward.

"It's alright…I shouldn't have. I know what that instinct feels like, and even then, I only experienced part of it…" his voice sounded wistful and jealous.

"Explain. Now."

He sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair; old habits die hard. "Bella's blood doesn't call to me, it calls to you. I thought it called to me because I smelled Bella through your mind."

_What? That makes no sense…_even as I thought this, I felt an undeniable force pulling me towards Bella's room. Every inch of space between us now seemed like an enemy, and my body hummed with anxiety as I involuntarily snuck another peek at the door.

"I didn't think my gift covered any of the senses besides sound and mental image," he continued faintly. "Now I see that the effect Bella has on you is so strong that I picked up on it and mistook it as my own sense."

I didn't answer him. What could I say? My mind was racing as I thought of his words and what they meant, how they could be possible…

Edward growled in mild frustration, "This would be so much _easier_ if I could just read one of your minds!"

I tore my eyes away from the door and blinked at him in confusion, "You can't read my mind?"

He shook his head, "No. Ever since Bella came, I noticed your thoughts getting fainter and fainter…when we left, I couldn't tune into them at all, and that's when I stopped feeling the pull towards Bella's blood…now it's as if you're not even in the room. I get…nothing," he blinked at me then, squinting as he tried to understand. "I haven't heard a single thought from you, besides your visions."

My visions! Of course, I had been meaning to talk to him about –

My thoughts cut off immediately as a heartbreaking sound reached my ears. In the next room, I heard a single, tiny sob, then another. My human was crying.

Edward heard the sound as well, and he frowned deeply. He didn't need his gift to understand that I wasn't going to be able to stand here much longer.

"We need to talk…later," he growled, "I need to hunt."

He was out the front door almost before I had reached Bella's room. I knocked softly, fighting the instinct that was telling me to break down the door, and listened as the sobs quieted slightly while the heartbeat within accelerated with fear.

"It's me, Bella."

I didn't miss the soft sigh of relief. "Come in…please."

* * *

The room was enormous and very luxurious. The walls were a deep emerald with gold accents, matching the color of the furniture perfectly. The décor looked vaguely Victorian in style, offering a sharp contrast to the enormous plasma screen TV, which hung on the wall beside a large mirror. Across from the mirror was an enormous king-sized bed upon which Bella sat, curled up into the fetal position. She looked up at me with tears in her eyes as I stood by the bed, watching her for a moment.

Instinct raged within me, compelling me to comfort her, and I joined her on the bed, my arms locking around her as she hid her face in my neck and cried. I murmured soft words of comfort and gently ran my fingers through her hair, soothing her in any way I could. I kept my face neutral, though inside I felt like screaming. All of this felt like far too much…

It hit me then, suddenly. Everything I'd just dealt with over the last few days, all of this stress that had unknowingly piled up slammed into me like a truck.

_Bella jumping from a cliff. Edward nearly killing himself. My visions becoming sporadic, irregular. Jasper's heartbroken look as I fled to Forks. Aro's grim smile as he announced that he was going to kill Bella. Bella crying. My instincts morphing into something I couldn't even begin to understand. Bella, so close to me, completely unaware of the fact that I was hopelessly in love with her…_

I felt the strong tingling behind my eyes again as my throat released a sound that seemed broken and strangled, distressing me greatly. My body trembled and my grip on Bella loosened as the world blurred in front of me. My breathing sped up and I felt wetness on my cheek with a mingling of shock, despair, and astonishment.

I was crying.

Bella must have heard me. I felt her shift in my arms and a moment later her warm hand was on my cheek, brushing away the tears with great care. I glimpsed her face briefly through the blurs, noticing that it was alight with astonishment.

"B-Bella…" I tried to say, but a great sob silenced me quickly.

"Shhh…" she put a finger to my lips before pulling me closer, stroking my back soothingly as my body continued to make terrifying sounds. Everything else I'd experienced up to this point was strange, but _this_…this was something else entirely.

It took several minutes for my body to come under my control again; for the strange sounds to stop. The tears were still streaming down my cheek, though, when I pulled my head from Bella's chest and glanced across the room at the mirror. The look of sadness on my face was so profound and so foreign that I nearly broke down again, but one look at Bella's eyes restored my calm.

Her face was still red with tearstains, but her eyes were staring at me with so much care and concern that it was almost overwhelming. She again brushed the tears from my cheek and then took my hand, stroking it with her thumb gently. Neither of us spoke for several more minutes.

"I…I don't understand," I stammered, looking up at Bella.

She smiled humorlessly, "Crying…it isn't very fun."

I sniffled once before chuckling dryly, "Sure isn't. I don't know how you humans stand that."

The look she gave me was full of meaning as she calmly explained, "Crying helps, actually. It's like…a release. When you're so sad that you can't stand it anymore, you cry, and it makes you feel better."

I blinked, thinking about that. I suppose I _did_ feel a little better now that my strange episode was over. More relaxed, somehow. I nodded slowly, "I guess…"

Bella laughed and titled her head at me curiously. "I didn't think you could cry," she whispered.

"I can't. It's impossible," I wiped away a lone tear before sighing heavily, "I don't know what the hell is happening to me, Bella."

To my surprise, she leaned in and pressed her lips to my cheek, a light blush coloring her features as she pulled away. "Don't worry, Alice. It's unnerving and it doesn't make sense, but there are far worse human experiences. Like drowning or breaking your leg," I look at her then, and we both burst out laughing. Her laugh was beautiful, echoing in my ear fondly. That was a sound I could get used to.

"You would know very well."

She threw her arms out grandly in an exaggerated flourish, and we both laughed again, even louder than before.

I fell back on the bed and buried myself in the pillows, giggling as Bella did the same. Her eyes met mine and we both stopped laughing. I became completely entranced by her eyes, the way they shined brightly as they looked at me. As if I was the one who had saved her instead of the other way around.

Slowly, she leaned in to me; I felt the warmth of her breath tickle my face and her heart rate spiked as she came in close, her lips inches from mine…

"_Dovreste comprare l'assicurazione auto!_" declared a voice from the TV in rapid Italian. Both of us jumped and glanced up at the screen, and I debated standing up and smashing it to pieces.

Bella glanced down in confusion and reached under the covers, then pulled out the remote she had been sitting on.

"Whoops."

Despite the ruining of a potentially beautiful moment, I couldn't help but giggle as she blushed brightly and flicked the TV off.

She fell back onto the bed and didn't look at me, causing me to sigh internally.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, "I was going to come in here and calm _you_ down, then I ended up breaking down like that…"

Bella looked up at me and frowned slightly, shaking her head, "No, Alice. It's not your fault…you didn't even know you _could_ cry. And you made me laugh..." she smiled again, "I think you're the only one who could've done that for me. Thanks."

I said nothing as her gaze turned up to the ceiling and her expression darkened.

"I can't believe how selfish he is," she finally whispered.

I nearly growled at the mention of Edward, but managed to control it, instead voicing my agreement.

"I mean, I don't understand why he still wanted to kill himself after he saw that I was alive, when the whole reason he was going to do it in the first place was because he thought I was dead."

I bit down on my lip, wondering if I should tell her. Over the century I'd been alive, I'd heard very little of the legends of _la tua cantante_, and I'd never heard it by that name until Edward had said it. Only a few casual mentions of humans whose blood was particularly potent to certain vampires made up my knowledge of the subject, and I'd never given the legends any thought until now. Looking at Bella, I decided that I believed the legend firmly, but how to explain this?

The second I decided that I should tell her, I received a brief vision to tell me how Bella would react to the news. I breathed a sigh of relief as it faded, glad to be having a normal vision. But could I trust it?

I decided to take the chance. "Bella…do you remember what Edward told you about your blood singing for him?"

She looked at me, curiosity in her warm brown eyes, "Yeah…"

"And when we were in the square with Edward, do you remember what he said?"

Understanding flickered across her face and her eyes widened, "'You've stopped singing'…" she quoted softly. "So…he no longer feels the pull of my blood?"

"I don't think so," I said, "At least not like he did before."

Her understanding was quickly replaced with anger, "So he left me because he didn't feel like sucking my blood anymore?"

"No, no!" I said hastily, "It's not like that…at all." _You have no idea._

She turned to look at me questioningly and I bit down on my lip, trying to find words for the emotions I was feeling. "It's not simply heightened bloodlust for a particular human. It's so much deeper than that. I don't know too much about it, but the legend goes that certain humans smell particularly good to certain vampires, almost like their blood is calling for them. But they don't simply want to drink from the human, it's more like…they're special to the vampire, different from other humans. And the vampire feels a strong pull; instinct drives them to protect the human as they would protect a mate, but it's difficult…their instincts sort of have a war with each other, bloodlust fighting against protection. The feelings are so strong that it's almost like they're…soul mates," I tried not to look at Bella as I said this, but my eyes were drawn to hers like a magnet, "Edward thought you were his singer, but" - _It was really me – _"the feeling faded, meaning that he was confused...you _do_ smell much better than normal humans, so I think he just got mixed up, and when he realized it wasn't what he thought, it just came as...a bit of a shock to him." _Kind of like it is to me. _

Bella mulled over this for a moment, chewing on her lip in thought. I hoped that I hadn't freaked her out at all.

"I guess that explains why I don't feel weirdly drawn to him anymore…" she finally said softly, "I mean, you'd think I'd be feeling something, too."

_I really hope you do…_

"Yeah," I agreed, swallowing past the lump in my throat.

Her brow crinkled in worry and she looked up to stare at her reflection in the mirror. "Alice?"

"Hmm?"

"Just because I'm…not with Edward, that doesn't mean…that doesn't mean I can't be with you guys, right? You're not going to leave me again…are you?" I could tell that she was fighting to keep her tone neutral.

"Oh, Bella…" I leaned forward and gently wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her close to me. "You're part of this family, whether it's because of Edward or not. I'll make sure of that," I grinned at her playfully, which she returned.

"Thanks, Alice. I just really hate the thought of you not being here," she admitted.

I felt a thrill of happiness at her words and I laughed lightly, "Well then, you better make sure I stay."

She leaned back against me, sighing in content and closing her eyes, obviously tired.

"You should sleep," I whispered, and she nodded gently, then glanced back up at me.

"Aren't you thirsty? You haven't hunted in a while."

I froze, becoming acutely aware of the lavish scent surrounding me, of the sound of a delicious heartbeat right in my arms. The blood was coursing through her veins, calling to me, _singing_ to me…

I bit down on my lip and flew across the room, standing before the door as a predatory snarl ripped through my throat. I recalled my own words from earlier…

_Their instincts sort of have a war with each other, bloodlust fighting against protection…_

I had barely even been aware of my thirst until she had mentioned it. The other half of me, the half that wasn't a monster, was screaming at me to remove the thing that threatened Bella, which just so happened to be me. I had to get away, and quickly.

"Good call," I muttered, then quickly held my breath.

Bella looked at me with pain in her eyes, and I winced. I chanced another breath, forcing out the words, "I promise I'll be back soon."

"Alright," she nodded, biting her lip. I turned and ran out of the bedroom, flinging myself off of the suite's balcony.

As I tore across the rooftops of Volterra, my thoughts berated me again. _Monster. _

Thankfully, there were no tears this time.

**A/N: Wow. **

**Looks like Edward isn't Prince Charming after all. :D**

**If you're wondering what the TV said, it was "You should buy auto insurance!", but because I don't speak a single word of Italian (I took 4 years of Spanish), I have no idea how accurate it is. Translators have a bad habit of saying things I don't actually want them to, so if it's horribly wrong and you happen to speak fluent Italian, try not to laugh at me too hard. **

**As always, read and review! **


	6. Chapter 6: Linked

**A/N: This chapter contains a bit more explanation. Personally, I'm content with the way things are progressing. I have some very good ideas for future chapters that I think will be well-received. **

**As I said, my insane update speed may be slowed a little bit thanks to the summer history homework I've just received (AP classes are a bitch) and the fact that my mother is whining incessantly at me to get a summer job. Still, this story remains to be my only therapy, so I'm definitely going to be working on it as much as possible.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. If I did, this is what the damn book would be like. Enjoy. **

Chapter 6: Linked

I returned to Bella's side several hours later, having gorged myself on the various farms outside the city of Volterra. By the time I stood in the dark, emerald room, staring longingly at the girl under the covers, she had fallen into a fitful sleep. I turned to leave, so as not to disturb her, but she spoke then, catching me off guard.

"Alice…" Just a soft, sleepy whisper. I'd heard it once before, but that did nothing to mute the effect Bella's faint voice had on me. I glanced back at her in surprise, committing the sound of her voice as it spoke my name to memory. Surely, there was nothing in the world that could compare to the beauty of Bella's voice. Well, other than Bella herself, of course.

I took a step towards her before I heard my name again, this time from behind me.

"Alice?" whispered a male voice, barely audible so as not to wake the sleeping human. I stopped and whirled around, hissing softly, until my brain caught up and I saw Carlisle standing in the doorway, his eyebrows raised. I shook my head quickly to shake off the protective thoughts and muttered an apology.

"Come with me, we need to talk," his words were gentle, but they were not a question. I cast one final glance of longing back over my shoulder before slipping out of the room silently, following my adoptive father.

We stepped into the lavish sitting room, and I noticed that Edward had returned. His eyes had lightened significantly due to his hunt, but feeding had done little to improve his mood. Storm clouds still hung heavily around him, and his gaze was loaded with a myriad of emotion. He sat on the elegant sofa with crossed arms, and he was looking at everything but me.

It was painful to see. Edward and I may have grown apart, but he had always been my closest adopted sibling, outside of Jasper. He had been kind and understanding, and despite the occasional cynical moods, he was usually fairly easy to be around. I wasn't used to this level of hatred and anger, and it made me hope fervently that things would improve between us.

I sat on the other side of the sofa, putting a couple of feet between us. Carlisle stood behind the glass coffee table and regarded both of us thoughtfully. Several minutes passed without any of us moving an inch.

At some cue that I didn't notice, Carlisle turned his eyes to me. "Explain your other visions, the ones you wanted to discuss with Edward."

I didn't miss the miniscule twitch my brother gave off at the mention of his name.

"The first one was how I knew he was…" I trailed off, struggling for something more elegant than 'killing himself', "…coming to Italy. I had the vision from inside of his mind, as if I was thinking the same thoughts that he was."

Edward uncrossed his arms and gripped the sofa material in his fingers, tearing the fabric slightly. Carlisle merely nodded and asked me to continue.

"The other was while we were in the square, I was running to Edward and I just…collapsed. I had a vision of him speaking to me and jumping off of the same cliff Bella did."

Edward squeezed tighter, tearing the material a little bit more.

"And was there anything else odd about them? Any senses other than sight and sound, anything that seemed different than your vampire senses?" asked Carlisle, and I shook my head.

Carlisle turned to Edward, his gaze dropping to the hand that was gripping the sofa, "Edward?"

His son wouldn't meet his eyes. Several more minutes passed before he finally spoke, "The second was my doing. I was testing a theory. I seem to have been right."

"And what might that have been?" questioned Carlisle, his voice full of patience. I wasn't sure how he managed it.

Slowly, he finally turned to look at me, his eyes darkening a few shades as he did so. "I believe Alice should explain something to you, first."

My gut twisted. I did _not_ want to talk about my insane, irresistible attraction towards a human girl to my father of all people, but I knew I had little choice.

I sighed heavily, "Edward seems to think that I'm Bella's singer," the word felt natural on my tongue, "And that the only reason he felt the pull of her blood was because he read it in my mind."

Carlisle's expression didn't change, "And do you agree?"

I nodded without the slightest hesitation, "I've never been surer of anything in my life."

"Hmm...that _would_ explain why you snarled at me when I went to get you."

"Not only that, but my instincts are going crazy around her. I've never felt such a strong force, such an urge to protect anything like I feel when I'm near her." _And her blood smells sweeter than anything on this Earth…_I decided to leave that last part out.

Carlisle nodded thoughtfully, "This is all very interesting, but what does it have to do with your visions of Edward?"

We both turned and looked at him, and he lowered his eyes to speak to the floor.

"As you both know, my gift doesn't cover any senses besides sight and sound, like Alice's…or so I thought. The fact that I'm able not only to smell things she smells, but also feel them so strongly I mistake them for my own," he paused to grimace briefly, "…clearly, we're both capable of more than we thought. I think our minds became connected in a way because of _la tua cantante_…that would explain why she had the vision from inside of my head. Also, I can't read her mind anymore –"

Carlisle's brows shot up at this, "Astonishing!"

"…I think it's because of her newfound…link with Bella," he paused to heave an enormous sigh, then closed his eyes and rubbed his face with his hands, "Since I can't read her mind either…The link must still be present, though only one-way, since she can see into my mind with visions, but I can't read her mind at all, nor can I smell Bella the way I used to…" his eyes looked sad and he seemed to deflate as he continued, forcing the words out. I could see how much this was costing him.

"I can only see Alice's visions, that's why…when she got close to me in Italy, I picked up on the vision that had brought her here and I started wondering…I made mental images in my head and tried to see if she would pick up on them, and she did. I couldn't believe that it worked, actually…"

He hid his face from us, and I knew that he was struggling to keep himself composed. To lose Bella like he had…I found myself sympathizing with him. Had I been in his place, I wouldn't be much better off.

His words confounded me, questioning nearly everything I knew about my abilities and vampire's gifts in general. At the same time, they seemed to make sense, adding another piece to the strange puzzle I was trying in vain to understand…

Edward's eyes widened as he looked at Carlisle, apparently reacting to some thought in his head. "You want me to do it _again?_"

Carlisle nodded, "Yes, please, if you would."

"Huh?" I interjected.

"Edward's going to create a mental image that is physically impossible and try to send it to you, and I want to see if you pick up on it."

I nodded, not thrilled with the idea, but willing to go along with it. Edward closed his eyes and concentrated heavily. A few moments passed with nothing happening, then:

_A mariachi band was playing under the ocean, its music strangely distorted by the water. Right next to the band stood Bella, standing at the entrance to the city of Atlantis, able to breathe perfectly because she was half shark. Edward swam up beside her, needing no air of his own, and landed gently on the ancient stone pavement beneath his feet before he turned and brought his lips to hers feverishly…_

The image dispelled instantly as my feral snarl ripped through the room. A moment later, I had Edward pinned against the wall, his eyes betraying a hint of amusement that only served to enrage me further.

"Alice," warned Carlisle, by my side in an instant, "Careful. You wouldn't want to wake up Bella."

It was probably the only thing he could have said to get me to control my anger. Slowly, I unclenched my fists and unwillingly released Edward, who seemed to find the entire thing horribly amusing.

"I take it you saw his thoughts?" inquired Carlisle. I merely nodded without taking my eyes off of Edward, not trusting myself enough to speak. Thankfully, he didn't ask what the vision had been. He probably already suspected part of it.

"Alright," he said, rubbing his forehead briefly, "You've definitely given us all quite a bit to think about. I'll do a bit of research and see if I can find anything that would even remotely explain this," Edward sat back on the couch as Carlisle turned toward the door, but I had thought of one more thing.

"Carlisle," I said quickly, effectively halting his motion, "There's one more thing. Earlier today, with Bella…I cried."

Carlisle's jaw actually _dropped_, and Edward whirled around to stare at me as if I had three heads.

* * *

Thankfully, the plane ride home was not too stressful, giving me plenty of time to mull over the strange thoughts in my head. Bella sat next to me while Carlisle and Edward sat together several rows ahead, which I was grateful for.

Several times, I had to restrain myself from turning to Bella and telling her everything: my feelings for her, the fact that she was my singer, the strange mental connection the bond had given me with Edward…in the end, the only thing I ended up telling her was the only thing I really _could _tell her without revealing my feelings.

"_Human?_" she whispered incredulously, being careful to keep her voice down on the crowded airplane.

I nodded briefly, glancing around quickly to make sure we weren't being overheard. "I'm not entirely sure, of course, because I don't remember my human life, but Carlisle explained it to me and it seemed to…fit, in a way."

I recounted the sensory details of my vision for her, and she seemed to agree with Carlisle's assessment. "The way you describe things is a little weird, but that sounds about right to me…"

I sighed softly and lay back on the headrest. "Human senses, headaches, crying…my god, I'm going insane," I declared solemnly.

Bella swatted my arm playfully, "Hey, I deal with that stuff regularly," she reminded me.

I grinned at her before answering in a cheerful tone, "That would explain why _you're_ insane."

She stuck her tongue out at me, "You're one to talk, you psychic freak."

I laughed at that, then realized something. "It's ironic…how something's actually wrong with me when I _can't_ see the future. At least not properly," I frowned slightly, worrying. What if my visions got stranger and stranger? What if they went away permanently?

Bella looked at me with concern in her eyes and leaned in, resting her head on my shoulder. Automatically, I lifted my hand to stroke her hair gently, then leaned in and kissed the top of her head. From the corner of my eye, I saw a pompous old man in a suit stare at us disapprovingly, but one quick glare from me was enough to make him turn away quickly, startled by my eyes.

"Nothing's wrong with you Alice…you're perfect and amazing just the way you are," I felt my breathing spike at her words, and a pleasant tingle shot through my body. "Even without your visions…you're still my Alice."

_My Alice. _She had just called me hers. A gentle purr escaped my lips; I was delighted.

Bella chuckled softly, and I narrowed my eyes, "What?"

"That sound you make…that purr. It's…really cute," her heart was beating faster now, and I didn't even need to see her face to know that she was blushing. I just smiled wider and hid my face in her hair.

"I can't help it…" she smelled so good. I inhaled her scent deeply, wishing I could keep it in my nose forever.

She didn't flinch at my actions, and instead asked with genuine curiosity, "How do I smell?"

I paused, trying to put words to this incredible scent. Several moments passed before I answered, "Sweet…like flowers, almost. Spicy…sort of like cinnamon. Light and clean, vaguely lavender, maybe a hint of…citrus? And a bunch of other things that I can't even begin to put words to." In truth, I kept half of it secret; half of her smell was as I had described, and the other half was the most delicious and savory meal I could possibly imagine.

She laughed lightly, "How can I smell like so many different things at once?"

"Your sense of smell is vastly inferior to mine, you silly human," my words were light and teasing, but her next ones weren't.

"They won't be for long."

I felt a thrill of emotion rush through me, and I bit down on my lip as I stared at the perfect human girl who hadn't moved her head from my shoulder. Her scent, her beauty was unlike anything I had ever known. I couldn't imagine her in any way other than the way she was, right here, right now.

But…she was so _vulnerable._ We could protect her from outside threats, yes, but she was still so fragile in this body of hers, especially with her unbelievable bad luck. Part of me hated seeing the girl I loved being so easily breakable.

And her _blood…_my god, I could do without her heart constantly begging me to stop it…

Still, though, I felt reluctant, and she seemed to pick up on that.

"Is…that alright?" she asked, her voice betraying a slight hint of nervousness.

"Well…yes, I'd just...hate to see you give up your humanity."

She turned then, unbuckling her seatbelt and laying down on my lap, looking up at me with her beautiful brown eyes, "You think I'd be selling my soul?"

I shook my head as I absently toyed with her hair, silently delighting in the close proximity…what were we talking about again? I realized what she'd said and answered quickly, "No, no, not exactly. But…my god, Bella, it's so difficult…especially that first year or so. I just worry about you." _A lot._

Bella thought for a moment before saying softly, "Edward said he didn't believe in an afterlife for vampires, that he thought I'd be damning myself if I became one of you…do you think that, too?" there was no accusation or disappointment in her tone, only curiosity.

"Well…no, I don't. I've never been able to believe that there's _nothing_ after we die. Er, die again. You know what I mean. I'm not sure what's waiting on the other side, but I know that there has to be something for us, especially since we've chosen to eat a more civilized food source…" I sighed heavily, unsure of my words, as I always was when I thought about religion and the afterlife, "In answer to your question, I really don't know. But I don't think any of us have 'damned ourselves' simply by being vampires."

I let my words sink in, watching Bella's expression as she considered what I'd said. "You aren't dead, you know."

"Hmm?"

"You said, 'die again', but you aren't dead yet. You don't have a heartbeat but…it takes more than that to be _alive._ I mean…there are some people with heartbeats that seem a hell of a lot more 'dead' than you do."

The world fell away again as I stared at the girl beneath me, feeling utterly touched by the things she said. At the same time, I felt a thrill of excitement as she stared back, her brown eyes warm and soft as they looked into mine. A stab of longing bit into my chest, but I just nodded, stilling the hand that had been playing with her hair and resting it at the top of her head. "Thank you, Bella. That means a lot to me."

We talked softly for another few hours before her eyelids slowly began to close themselves and she fell asleep, her head still in my lap. I didn't rouse her, even after the fasten seatbelt sign came on.

If the plane was going to crash, I'd simply hold her in my arms, protecting her better than any stupid seatbelt ever could.

**A/N: Huzzah! :D **

**This one was a little bit shorter than my usual chapter length, apologies! D:  
**

**...But I'm pretty happy with the content. As always, let me know what you think; reviews are like music for the ficcer's soul.**


	7. Chapter 7: Haunting Pasts

**A/N: Wow! Got a lot of love for that last chapter, thank you guys so much! Keep 'em coming!**

**Disclaimer: So I **_**tried**_** to take credit for Twilight once, but that caused the entire Volturi guard to come after me and stake a claim on my immortal soul, so my lawyers advised me to revoke said credit and further advised that I put disclaimers so that any of you reading this who just so happen to be members of the Volturi don't show up in my bedroom anytime soon. **

**...I do not own Twilight. **

Chapter 7: Haunting Pasts

A century's worth of memories flashed before my eyes: some painful, some cheerful, some terrifying. I saw them all with perfect clarity, as if they had happened just moments ago. Everything I had ever done, seen, thought, or otherwise experienced as a vampire was right on the tips of my fingers, the memories springing forward obediently without the slightest resistance; even the fire at the beginning of my new life, the shared memory that so many of my kind repressed. The pain of the change and the ease with which I recalled it was a sharp contrast to the mental barrier that barred me from remembering anything before it. I paused in my reminiscence, testing the barrier as I so often had, trying to find a weak spot. I found nothing at first, but new determination lent me strength, and I managed to hold my focus longer than I ever had during previous attempts to unearth my human memories.

There. A tiny flaw in the wall, a mere shard of a moment in my past presented itself to me, flashing images before my eyes…

_Darkness. Utter darkness. It was as if light itself was prohibited to shine in this place. I heard no sound, at first, but that of my frantic breathing, and realized very quickly that I was afraid._

_ No. Terrified. Surely, no one in this world had ever experienced fear in the magnitude I was feeling it now. _

_ "Where am I!" I screamed hysterically, my voice thick and raspy from all of the crying. I was standing, this much I was certain of, and I felt a heavy metal cuff around my right foot, ensuring that I would not try to escape. _

_ Escape _where?_ I saw nothing but blackness, impenetrable darkness all around, and as my desperate cry echoed back to my ears in the nothingness, I heard answering calls. _

_ Screams, groans, senseless babbling sounded through the walls of my strange prison, heightening my already monumental terror. I was trembling now, and tiny teardrops raced down my face as I collapsed onto the filthy floor, wishing fervently that I was dead. Anything, _anything_ to be away from this world of screams and despair and shadows. _

_ A tiny sliver of light suddenly appeared several feet in front of where I lay, illuminating the grime on the concrete floor directly in front of what I could only guess was the door to my prison. I blinked at the harshness of the light, but at the same time felt a tiny spark of hope, as if this glow was proof that, somewhere, there was a world beyond all of these shadows. I stared directly into the light as soon as it was not painful to do so. _

_ "Do you know who you are?" asked a gruff voice from beyond the veil of darkness, speaking through the doorway. _

_ The voice startled me and I jumped, causing the chains at my feet to rattle slightly. I thought of the words he had spoken and cast my mind back, trying to remember. Did I know who I was? I had a name, surely…and a face, and memories, somewhere…did I have a family? A home? Something waiting for me beyond that doorway in the world of the light?_

_ A flash of knowing sparked in my brain, giving me the answer I sought out._

_ "A-Alice…" I whispered, "Mary Alice Brandon." _

_I felt a brief sense of pride for remembering the name. _My_ name._

_ "Wrong!" bellowed the voice, packed with an anger that made me cringe. "You are patient number fifty-seven. Do you hear me? Patient number fifty-seven. That is your real name."_

_ What? That didn't seem right at all…_

_ "W-where am I?" I asked weakly, having lost any of my earlier hysteria, "Where is…my family?"_

_ Seconds passed. Just when I thought that the voice would leave me with no answers, he replied, "You're in hell. You have no family. You've been abandoned because you're a _freak." _He spoke the last word as if it were a curse._

_ "Enough, Leonard," spoke a much kinder voice. It held a strange quality to it; while it was strong, deep and beautiful, it also gave the impression of great age and wisdom. "Do not needlessly frighten our patients. Stand aside, you're needed in ward A."_

_ The gruff voice – Leonard – snapped angrily at the other man, "You were instructed to stay out of this ward, Alexander."_

_ "Because I treat the patients as if they are human instead of sick dogs, like the rest of you seem to? Your words are meaningless, and your ideas barbaric. I was sent here by the warden; you may ask him yourself if you still have doubts." _

_ I heard one set of footsteps quickly leaving the scene, echoing into the distance with the faded screams of other patients. I shuddered, waiting for the other man – Alexander – to leave as well. I received a quick vision of his face and nearly gasped at his otherworldly beauty. A moment later, he spoke, his voice only serving to reinforce the handsome picture in my head._

_ "What is your name?" he asked, and I opened my mouth to repeat my earlier answer before recalling the angry words of Leonard before him. _

"_I'm…patient number fifty-seven," I whispered softly. _

_ "No," he answered kindly, "you are Mary Alice Brandon. Repeat it back to me, please." _

_ I blinked in surprise, squinting into the sliver of light, trying to catch a glimpse of the man beyond, but saw nothing. "Mary Alice Brandon," I finally amended. _

_ "Good," he whispered encouragingly, "I never want you to forget that. No matter what they tell you here, no matter what they try to do, remember this name: Mary Alice Brandon." _

_ "Where am I?" I asked, hoping to receive a better answer than the one Leonard had given me. _

_ "You're…in a very bad place, and you don't belong here. And I'm going to do what I can to help you, but it will be difficult. You will not hear from me very often. The others who work here will not show you kindness. You must endure, and above all, you must remember your name."_

_ "Mary Alice Brandon…"_

_ "Yes," whispered the beautiful voice, "Remember. I must leave you now; I will try to return as soon as I can. You must survive, Mary Alice Brandon."_

_ "Wait!" I called, reaching my hand towards the sliver of light as it disappeared, casting the room into a darkness that was even more profound and lonely than before. _

_ Despair crashed over me as my visitor with the beautiful voice left me to the cold embrace of the empty void, and I let out a piercing scream of terror that seemed to fill the stale air around me, thickening it as it grew louder, sharper, angrier…_

"Alice! Alice, come back!"

Someone was shaking me roughly and my eyes shot open, taking in the worried face of my adoptive father. His hands were on my shoulders, holding me down to the floor as I blinked in the light, suddenly so blinding after all of the darkness.

"Carlisle…" I managed to whisper, and he gently eased me up into a sitting position.

"Did you see anything?" he asked, his brows shooting up when I managed to nod.

I took a deep breath and brought the memory forth, clinging to it desperately, as if it might try to slip behind the wall if I didn't focus hard enough on it.

"There was…darkness. Darkness and screaming. I was alone, and I couldn't see anything until these two men came…" I recounted the details for him, and he seemed astonished at my words.

"Leonard and Alexander, you say?"

I nodded, "Yes. Leonard was human, but Alexander was a vampire. I'm sure of it."

Slowly, Carlisle helped me to stand. I caught my forehead as I finally straightened up completely, wincing at the slight stab of pain.

"Headache?" asked Carlisle.

"Yeah…it's weird…there, it's gone."

He frowned, but said nothing. He crossed the room glanced at the titles of a few very old-looking books on his floor-to-ceiling bookshelf and selected one, setting it down on the table, then seemed to think of something else and returned to the shelf to grab four more volumes. "It would appear I have quite a bit to look into…" he whispered, looking over the growing stack of books and papers on his desk.

"Sorry," I whispered softly, but he shook his head immediately.

"No, no, none of that," he objected, "You're offering quite a bit of insight that was previously completely unheard of, so far as I've noticed. And I'm always willing to help you discover more as to your past, Alice."

I nodded slowly, still trying to wrap my head around the images I'd seen, "I can't believe it worked…nearly a century with nothing, and now…" I trailed off; there simply weren't any words.

Carlisle turned away from his desk and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, smiling warmly at me. "You're very brave, Alice. And very strong. I know that you will be able to recall many more memories someday. You've already made tremendous progress today."

I sighed, but smiled back at him. The only question now was: Did I _want_ to know what else lay on the other side of that mental wall?

I shook my head roughly, deciding instead to think of more cheerful topics, "Bella's still here."

Carlisle nodded, "Yes, hiding from Charlie, most likely. I think you should probably take her home now, he'll want his daughter back."

I chuckled and left the room quickly, going downstairs to find Bella sitting on the couch, nervously bouncing up and down. Emmet sat across from her, having returned to the house with Rosalie right after we had.

"...And if he kills you, just look on the bright side: at least he'll use his gun. It'll be quick, you won't feel a thing!" he said cheerfully, clearly trying to be consoling. Judging by the increasing anxiety on Bella's face, it didn't appear to be working.

"Emmet, you're about as comforting as a plush pillow full of thumbtacks," I said, and Bella turned around, smiling broadly as she saw me. I smiled back, feeling a familiar tug in my chest as I did so.

"Aw, come on...it beats getting mauled by a bear!"

Bella's eyes widened and her heart sped up nervously at his words. I spoke up quickly, "Again: not helping. Come on, Bella. I'll take you home."

She nodded nervously and took my hand, sending a shimmer of sparks across my skin. _Whoa. _

I wanted to tell her everything I'd learned about my past from my session with Carlisle, but one look at her anxious face told me I should wait for a more appropriate time, so instead, I pulled her into a sweeping hug, which she gratefully returned.

"I won't let him touch you," I muttered softly into her ear, causing her to shiver slightly.

"Thanks, Alice..." she seemed reluctant to let go of me, but we finally broke apart and I took her hand, leading her to the car.

* * *

"Grounded. Grounded, grounded, and_ grounded. _Super-grounded. Infinity grounded. So grounded that I'm fighting an urge to lock you far, far away in castle guarded by a dragon where no one can hear you."

Bella said nothing.

"What the hell were you _thinking?_ Running off for _three days?_ During my best friend's _funeral?_"

"Sorry…" muttered Bella for the eighth time that night. From my perch outside of the window, I winced, feeling a rush of sympathy for my human as well as her father. This was clearly not easy on either of them. Charlie was now stressed out of his mind, and Bella hated to lie to him, but 'So Alice had a vision that Edward was going to Italy to be killed by an ancient coven of vampires because he thought I was dead' was _not_ something to tell one's human father. "It's just that Angela and Eric had broken up and she was so torn up about it that she ran away to Seattle. I was worried, so I had to go find her and make sure she was alright." It wasn't the best of excuses, but there wasn't much that she could have said to justify her actions. If Charlie knew the truth, he would probably blow a gasket.

"And you couldn't have _waited until I got home_ to go traipsing off to Seattle?" he roared.

I heard her shift uncomfortably on the couch, "I'm sorry," _number nine,_ "I was so worried that I really wasn't thinking straight. I only thought to call Jake and tell him I was leaving."

Silence.

"You're still grounded until you're 87."

"Alright," she said simply. I heard her get off the couch and walk towards the stairs, but Charlie stopped her.

"I called your mother."

Bella's footsteps halted immediately, "You did what…"

Charlie sighed, "She wants you to go to Jacksonville to see her, she's…worried, to say the least. This latest disappearance didn't exactly _help_, Bella."

"But –"

"Look, just…think it over, alright? Just a weekend trip or something. I'm not going to make you go, although after that little excursion, half of me thinks I _should…_but you need to think about this, and I really think you should at least go and see her."

Bella sighed, "Alright…I'll think about it." She started up the stairs again.

"One last thing."

She groaned loudly.

"I was just curious when I heard that Alice Cullen was back in town." I froze. _Damn dog, can't keep a secret._

"Uh, yeah, she is," said Bella, "In fact, she was supposed to visit tomorrow..."

"Grounded."

"But –"

He cut her off, "Are any of the others here?"

She paused for several seconds before sighing, "Yes, Dad. They're all back now. But the only one of them that I want to see is Alice."

I heard Charlie shift his weight uncomfortably.

"Come on, Charlie. You like Alice."

"I don't want you seeing _him…"_ We all knew who he was referring to.

"I don't want to see him, Charlie. Just Alice. I've been lonely lately since Jake's been busy a lot, and it'd be really nice to spend some time with her."

I couldn't help but smile.

"I'll think about it."

"Charlie –"

"I said I'll think about it. That's the best you're getting out of me."

"Alright…" she made her way up the stairs, unchallenged this time.

I turned to the tree next to me, ready to climb up into Bella's room when the world around me froze, then disappeared.

_I saw a tall, beautiful woman with wild red hair and eyes to match. Her lips were pulled back over her teeth in anger, and she moved quickly and quietly through the trees, looking for all the world like a predatory feline on the hunt. She stopped short and turned, her eyes narrowing on a spot far off in the distance. She gave a low growl before taking off again, altering her course slightly to avoid the coven of vampires who seemed to have returned to town._

I returned to myself quickly, feeling a brief thrill of fear in my throat. Victoria. Victoria was on the hunt. She was close.

I glanced warily around at the trees while I grabbed my cell phone out of my pocket and quickly dialed Emmett's number.

He picked up on the fist ring, "Hey sis, enjoying your human?" he said, his tone light and teasing. I rolled my eyes. Of course, _everyone_ knew about my feelings for Bella by now. Everyone but Bella. How infuriating.

"Emmett, Victoria's nearby."

His attitude quickly evaporated, "What? Where?"

"I'm not sure exactly, but she's on the hunt. I need you to come out immediately and keep an eye on the area. Oh, and inform the others on your way out."

"Yeah, of course, Ali," he said, "Don't worry. Nothing's gonna touch Bella." He hung up.

I closed the phone and sighed, hoping he was right. Casting one more glance into the trees, I climbed up to Bella's window and softly tapped on the glass.

She was standing in front of her closet, staring blankly into the depths when she heard me. Her eyes met mine immediately and she broke into a warm smile as she dashed over to open the window. Looking at that smile, it was so easy to forget that we were in danger.

An instant later, my arms were around her, holding her as tightly as I dared. "Bella…"

"Alice." She hugged me back, and I felt her fingers running through my hair. I smiled softly, but it didn't last. Slowly, I pulled away and looked at her with a grave expression. Her face fell.

"What is it?"

For a fraction of a second, I considered how to respond, but the answer dawned on me instantly.

"Bella. Go see Renee."

"What?"

I had to tell her the truth. I wouldn't lie to Bella, ever. She deserved more than that. "Victoria is in town. Charlie wants you to go see Renee. Accept his offer."

"_What!"_

"Please, Bella…please trust me," I whispered as there was a knock on the door. I glanced at it briefly before turning back to Bella and whispering urgently, "The tickets. The ones Esme bought you for your birthday. Say you're going, this weekend. Please."

"Bella?" called Charlie from the other side of the door.

"Alice, if Victoria's around, I don't want to just run away –"

"Bella, there are seven vampires and a whole pack of werewolves in the area. We can definitely defend ourselves. You should go, just while we finish this. It'll be easier that way."

Bella took a long blink as Charlie's voice sounded from the other side of the door. "Bella, open up. We need to talk."

"One sec!" called Bella to the door before turning back to me and whispering, "Fine – but only if you'll come with me."

My heart caught in my throat as I thought of that possibility, of going to Florida with Bella, meeting her mom…Oh, yes. I definitely would be taking her up on that. Not to mention, it would be convenient for her to have a vampire escort, just for safety's sake. I nodded quickly, trying to hide my delight at the prospect. _Focus. We're in danger._

"I'll go. You'll be safer that way, anyway." I wasn't sure, but I could have sworn I saw her smile a bit before I quickly took up my hiding place outside of the window.

"Bella…" said Charlie again, and she crossed the room quickly and opened the door to let her father in.

"I'll go to Jacksonville," she said as soon as the door was open, causing Charlie to blink in surprise, "But…I'll only go if Alice can come with me. I could go this weekend. I have two tickets already, Esme bought them for my birthday, they're about to expire, and I know Alice would love to go, and –"

"Whoa, slow down!" said Charlie, holding his hands up defensively, "That's great, and I'm sure Alice could go with you. Now pause and take a breath before you turn blue."

Bella breathed in, and I could tell that she was a little bit frazzled by the news I had just given her. Charlie, however, seemed oblivious.

"In all of the excitement I completely forgot…I heard you jumped off a cliff in La Push?" he asked, as if he thought the idea was crazy.

Bella groaned and flopped down on the bed, "Ugh…this again."

"Bella…? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"It was for recreational purposes only! Cliff-diving…the locals do it all the time. I was bored," she explained, her face turning beat read.

Charlie nodded absently, the idea of recreational cliff-diving going completely over his head, much like it did for me. Bella was klutzy enough; she didn't need to go jumping off of cliffs to make matters even worse. I winced at the thought, vowing to never let her be on anything tall again. The vision of her hitting the water was still too fresh in my memory, making my granite skin crawl…

"Alright…I just worry about you, Bella. I know you aren't exactly…graceful,"

"Dad…" she groaned.

"Sorry, kiddo. I know you've noticed it by now, too. Being born a Swan doesn't exactly mean you can start dancing Swan Lake."

"Stop. I'm begging you."

Charlie's expression now looked moderately offended, "I thought that was a good one…" he murmured. I did, too, because I now sat with my hands clamped over my mouth, trying to keep from laughing.

"Alright, no more jumping off of cliffs. Alice kind of beat you to the punch with that one, though. She thinks I'm an idiot." _I think nothing of the sort…_

"Good. We all need at least one friend who thinks we're an idiot. Get some sleep, alright kiddo? I'll call Renee and tell her you and Alice are going to visit. It's late, but I swear, the woman never sleeps. Oh, and Bella?"

"Hmm?"

"Just because I'm letting Alice go with you does not mean you aren't still super grounded when you get back."

"Ugh. Fine."

Charlie walked out, closing the door softly behind him.

The second he was gone, I flitted through the window and sat at the end of Bella's bed, grinning broadly.

"Groundhog," I teased, and Bella rolled her eyes and threw a pillow at me.

"Shut up and help me pack, we're leaving the day after tomorrow."

"'Kay," I said cheerfully, sliding off the bed and moving to Bella's closet, silently celebrating in my head.

**A/N: BAM! What'd ya'll think?  
**

**Good things on the way, my friends. Good things on the way. **

**I just re-watched New Moon right before writing this, partly for inspiration and partly because I need a refresher before Eclipse comes out…which is in like 3 days. Happy face. :) **

**Anyway, review! Alice told me that she loves it when you guys review, and who wouldn't want to make Alice happy? Heaven knows it's what **_**I**_** live for :D**


	8. Chapter 8: Mother Knows best

**A/N: People are starting to notice that I've completely fallen off of the radar and that I've been holed up in my house for days, barely answering my phone. So I got kidnapped yesterday, which is why there was no update. Apologies.**

**Also, I am in awe of the immense benefits of listening to classical music while writing :D**

**Disclaimer: List of things I own: a pair of shoes, more notebooks than I can count, 20 bucks, and this story. List of things I don't own: China, a life, a private jet, and Twilight. **

Chapter 8: Mother Knows Best

"For the love of god, Alice. It's only for a weekend. You do _not_ need that many clothes," said a familiar voice from behind me. I paused in my packing and turned around to meet Edward's darkened gaze. He stood leaning against the doorway, his arms folded across his chest, his lips pressed into a thin line as he watched me fill my – rather large – suitcase. I could feel the jealousy rolling off of him in waves, but I didn't feel smug. I felt sorry for my brother; even he did not deserve this heartbreak.

Despite my heavy thoughts, I decided to keep the conversation light. There was no reason to antagonize him needlessly. "They call Florida 'The Sunshine State' for a reason. I'm sure I won't be able to hide inside the whole weekend. I need clothes if I don't want to end up sparkling all the damn time."

He smirked slightly, but his eyes did not soften. "No, you need clothes because you're Alice."

I smiled, "That, too."

He said nothing else, so I continued to fill my suitcase, feeling his hard gaze on me the entire time. I knew exactly why he had come here. I further knew that he would speak when he was ready to, and that it would do me no good to rush him, so I kept quiet.

Finally, I finished packing and now struggled to close the suitcase enough to get the zipper to close all the way. I frowned, raising my hand to slam down on the top with a force that hopefully wouldn't break the bag.

"You're damning her. You know that, right?"

My hand froze in midair and I returned it to my side very slowly, sighing as I did so. "No, Edward, I _don't_ know that. And neither do you," I fought to keep the annoyance out of my voice, but couldn't quite manage.

He narrowed his eyes at me, his gaze becoming cold, calculating. "You can't honestly tell me that you'd want her to be a monster."

My mind grew distant, recalling my earliest days as a newborn: the bloodlust, the anger, the internal battle I had fought with myself to escape my natural food source. Every day had been its own separate hell, made worse by the fact that the only thing I remembered about myself was my name and the fire I had been born in.

_The fire…_

Nothing would ever compare to the agony I had felt in those flames during the change. Nothing…except perhaps putting Bella through it. I remembered every instant of pain, every scream, every silent and not-so-silent prayer that my life would end. I would never wish that sort of torture on anyone, least of all Bella.

I felt a brief flare of anger towards Edward for making this so difficult. Before letting the Volturi know of Bella's existence, we would have at least had choices. Now, however, things would be difficult. My thoughts took only an instant to consider, but I wasn't sure how to answer Edward. I briefly considered lying to him by telling him something like, 'It's really not _that _bad...," since lying was now a possibility thanks to my new-found mental shield, but I decided against it. Lies generally made things worse, and the last thing I needed was for all of this to get _worse._

"You're right, Edward. I don't want to put her through what I went through, what all of us went through. But the Volturi will be watching, and you know that they aren't going to tolerate leaving her human. Now, if that ends up being her choice, I will personally defend her from them with everything I have. But their knowledge of her only adds another stressor to her decision and, before you ask: yes, I do blame you for that one."

He didn't appreciate that. "_Me?_ You're the one who brought her to Volterra!"

My expression turned pleading, which he clearly did not expect. "Edward, I had no _choice._ You're part of this family, and I had to do what I could to save you. Awkward situation or not, you're still my brother, and I still love you. Bella and I weren't going to let you kill yourself. I don't regret going to stop you. Please understand that it would have been impossible for me to simply ignore something like that."

"Alice…" he sighed heavily.

"I won't apologize for caring about you. The plane leaves in three hours and thirty-seven minutes, and I have to pick Bella up and head for the airport." I managed to force the zipper shut at last, then picked up my suitcase effortlessly, setting it on its wheels as I turned to the door.

"I won't let you do it," he said simply, his voice betraying no emotion.

I suppressed the growl within me and glanced back at him, thoroughly annoyed now. "It's not _up to you_, Edward. It's not even up to me. We have to let Bella decide." His eyes darkened at my words, and I scoffed loudly, "It's ridiculous for you to argue with me about this when I'm conflicted, as well. I don't want to bring pain to Bella anymore than you do. But this simply _isn't our choice to make._ I'm going to deal with that, one way or another. And you'll have to find some way to accept it as well, because…what was it you said to Bella? 'It's my life, not yours'? The same principle applies here. You're a hypocrite if you're fighting for the right to make your own life decisions and then refuse to let Bella make hers."

His temper flared, and he uncrossed his arms and took an angry step towards me. "Yet you interfere with _my_ decisions and not _hers?_ She can kill herself, but _I _can't?" he roared loudly, but I didn't flinch.

"You were going to _end your life._ Bella's not killing herself, Edward. There's an enormous difference," I responded, impatience in my words.

Instead of answering, he simply re-folded his arms and seethed. I turned away, completely sick of this argument. Bella's words lingered in my mind…

_You aren't dead…there are some people with heartbeats that seem a hell of a lot more 'dead' than you do. _

She was right. I always knew that I had a soul. It had been empathy towards my first human victims that had caused me to fight my bloodlust as a newborn. No soulless being would have fought their own instincts so strongly in order to do what they believe was right. No soulless being would even have a concept of what was 'right'. Despite all of my worries about Bella becoming a vampire, I knew that her soul would not be one of them. Bella had a strong sense of right and wrong; I doubted that even newborn bloodlust would change that in the long-run.

Still. The fire, the pain, the intense learning of control over one's instincts…it was difficult, always difficult. And while a huge part of me was thrilled with the idea of turning Bella, of making her addition to the family official for everyone, of having her with us for eternity…I wanted to make sure, at least, that she looked at the possibility of her change from all angles and made a serious decision. I would not force it on her, nor keep it from her. She deserved to choose. If Edward knew what was good for him, he'd respect that.

I rolled my suitcase to the door and opened it, then froze.

_Jasper._

He was standing across the doorway with his arms folded, leaning against the wall. His blonde hair was in slight disarray, and I remembered that I had once found that look to be attractive. His eyes were nearly black, and I could not read his expression.

"Alice," he said simply, "you seem agitated."

Immediately, a feeling of calm settled over me, but evaporated quickly as I became pissed at the fact that he was messing with my emotions.

"Not the time," I muttered, stepping out into the hallway and turning towards the stairs. His words stopped me.

"Running off _again_?"

I froze on the top step, staring at him from the corner of my eye. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right: I _was_ childishly avoiding him. "Make it quick," I said, not moving from my position on the stairs.

"Cold. Sixty years we had together, now you give me only a minute." Anyone else wouldn't have noticed the pain in his voice, but I knew him far too well. I turned and met his black eyes.

"I don't regret the time I spent with you," I whispered softly, "you were amazing, and I always did feel drawn to you. I had fun, Jasper, but I'm afraid I'm not in love with you. Not like I'm in love with Bel-"

"Don't say her name!" he snapped before his shoulders slumped ever so slightly as his head lowered. "Please," he added.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered. I could think of nothing else to say.

Edward chose that moment to stick his head out into the hallway, a spark of hope flashing in his dark eyes as he looked at Jasper, "I'm coming with you."

I stared in confusion as Jasper slowly turned his head to meet Edward's gaze. The look lasted several seconds before Jasper nodded, "I could use company, I suppose."

I received a vision and suddenly I understood. They were going off on their own for a while.

I rubbed my neck as they both turned to look at me. I knew I should probably say something. "Will you be back?"

Jasper sighed, "Of course. This is still my family. I think."

Edward just nodded, "We'll stay to help defend against Victoria. After that, we're gone."

I turned back to my brother and the man I had been with for sixty years, "Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Alice," said Edward, turning back into his room.

"Bye Ali," said Jasper. I felt a tug at my chest as he used my old nickname. The farewell had been quick and simplistic, but for once, I would make a scene. I knew this was how they both wanted it. Biting my lip, I gripped my suitcase and went down the stairs to pick up Bella.

* * *

"They _left?" _exclaimed Bella in surprise, ripping her eyes off of the road to stare at me in shock.

I nodded grimly, "They'll stay to defend against Victoria first, then they're leaving."

"But…oh my god, this is terrible! I'm tearing your family apart!" she slumped back in her seat and brought her hands to her face.

"No, Bella, it's alright. This tends to happen," she looked up at me curiously. "Over the decades, one or more of us will decide it's time to spend a little time on our own. A few months, maybe a year, maybe a couple of years. They didn't leave us permanently, they just wanted some time away."

"Still…" whispered Bella, "I'm so sorry."

I shook my head, "Don't be. It's not your fault."

She sighed and stared out the window for a minute before turning to look at me again, "Wait, why did Jasper leave?"

I felt a lump in my throat and swallowed quickly, "Um…" This was something I didn't want to talk about. Guilt washed over me as it always did when I thought of him. I bit down on my lip, and several seconds passed. I could feel Bella watching me closely and was thankful that she said nothing else. I took a deep breath before answering, "I left him."

She still said nothing, but reached across to my seat and wrapped her arms around me in a hug that I was immensely grateful for. Such a brief, simple gesture, yet it made me love her even more. She pulled back to her seat, but still leaned towards me. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Did I? I probably should, it wasn't a good idea to simply pretend that nothing had happened. I may not be in love with him anymore, but that didn't mean that leaving him was easy and painless. Yes, I did want to talk about it, but I could only tell Bella half the story.

"I just…didn't love him anymore. We were happy for so long and I'll never regret the time I spent with him, but it wasn't working out. I decided I couldn't be with him, it wouldn't be fair since I can't return his feelings anymore." I wanted to scream out the part I had left out so badly that I had to bite my tongue to stop from adding, 'because I'm in love with you.'

"I'm so sorry, Alice…" she whispered, her tone weighted with an emotion that I couldn't quite decipher.

"It's alright, Bella. No one should be with someone that they don't really love," I replied, and she chuckled grimly.

"I know the feeling."

We rode in silence for a few more minutes until she turned to me again, frowning deeply. "I hate running away. I mean, it's _me_ Victoria's after, not you guys. And yet everyone else has to fight her off while I run away to Florida."

"It's not _running away,_ Bella," I countered, "It's just a precaution. Don't be offended, but I really don't think you could take Victoria."

She snorted, "This is why I need to be one of you guys!"

I bit down on my lip, recalling my earlier worries. "We'll talk."

"Alice…"

"I didn't say no," I clarified, "I really want you to decide, Bella. Ultimately, it is your choice. I just want to make sure you know exactly what you're agreeing to first, alright?"

We pulled into the airport's main entrance, and I glanced at Bella to find her staring at me incredulously. "What?" I asked, suddenly self-conscious.

"I…Did you just say it's _my _choice?"

I frowned, taking a left towards a bright sign declaring 'United Airways', "Of course it's your choice. Who am I to tell you who you have to be?"

I pulled into a large parking lot, stopping the car just as Bella's arms came around me again suddenly. I blinked in surprise before reaching up and hugging her back tightly.

"Thank you, Alice…" she whispered, her words sincere and happy, and I couldn't help but giggle. She then kissed me on the cheek and declared, "I love you!"

Even though I knew her words were light and most likely not meant to be taken in the way I secretly hoped for, I still felt my breath catch in my throat. I sat frozen to the spot for a moment as Bella slid out of the car and went to the trunk to get her suitcase. I got out slowly and grabbed mine as well, laughing as Bella's eyes bugged out of her head. "Jeez, Alice. You brought enough stuff to clothe an army."

I stuck my tongue out her and we started walking towards the terminal. "A very, very fashionable army."

She smirked at that one, "What are you going to do, frighten the enemy with designer jeans?"

I scoffed, "Designer jeans don't frighten anyone, Bella. Except you, apparently. And you better pray to God it's sunny the entire time we're in Florida or I _will_ drag you out shopping," I threatened menacingly.

Bella's eyes widened in fear and I suppressed a chuckle as we reached the terminal.

* * *

I liked Renée immediately. After warmly greeting Bella, she turned to me and hugged me like I was her second daughter. She looked quite a bit like Bella, but her eyes were clear and blue in contrast to her daughter's chocolate brown. She was bubbly and childlike, asking me a million and a half questions at a mile a minute. I must have really gotten into our discussion, because when we got in the car, Bella whispered to me, "I haven't heard her talk so much in ages. Remember to make sure you let her get a breath in, alright?" she grinned, and we both burst out laughing.

Thankfully, it was a overcast, so I was able to wear summer attire instead of covering myself from head to toe. Renée marveled at my paleness, vowing to help me 'tan up a bit' under the intense Florida sun. Bella's eyes widened at that one, but I politely declined with the excuse that I sunburn easily.

Renée drove through the streets of Jacksonville (incredibly slowly, if you ask me), Bella sitting beside me in the backseat. My arm was around her waist and her head came to a comfortable rest on my shoulder as I chatted with Renée. I caught her staring at our close contact on occasion, but she never commented.

We arrived at her modest white house after being informed the Phil was coaching an extra practice for his baseball team, and therefore wouldn't be home until late. After a few hours, she began making dinner, and though I said I'd eaten on the plane, she insisted that it was too long to go without eating, as well as the fact that I was 'too skinny' and that I _must _at least have a small plate of food. I agreed quickly, not wanting to offend her, and Bella gave me a confused look. I shrugged at her in response, trying to look like it was no big deal. Renée set a plate of steak in front of me, and I ate slowly as they did.

It sure didn't taste good, but it wasn't the most horrible experience of my life. I had nearly finished my plate and was feeling rather proud of myself before my stomach picked itself up and flipped upside down.

I dropped my fork with a loud 'clang', causing both Bella and Renée to look up at me in confusion. I stared at Bella with wide eyes, and her expression changed to one of dread. I hastily excused myself and ran upstairs, cursing human food under my breath.

* * *

"You're sure you're alright?" whispered Bella softly as I sat on the couch, my stomach still churning angrily, but now completely empty.

I nodded slowly and Bella sat next to me, pulling me into her arms. I leaned against her as she sat back on the couch, rubbing my back soothingly. Renée came into the living room and looked at me apologetically. "I'm so sorry, Alice –"

I cut her off with a quick shake of my head, "No, no, it's probably from the sandwiches they served on the plane. Airline food sometimes has that effect on me," I explained.

"Still…I shouldn't have forced food on you, you _did _say you'd already eaten…" she trailed off as she watched one of Bella's hands move to my hair and absently twist a few strands on her fingers while she looked down at me with concern.

"It's alright, Renée," I said with a polite smile, "You're right, I am too skinny."

Renée nodded absently, still watching Bella play with my hair. Bella seemed oblivious to her mother's fascination. She didn't even look up when Renée asked, "It's after sunset and a lot cooler outside…you girls want to take a quick walk?"

I opened my mouth to reply when I was hit with another vision.

* * *

_Ren__é__e and Bella were walking down a street lined with palm trees on both sides, talking softly as they went. _

"_Are you liking Forks?" asked Ren__é__e, her voice casual._

"_Yeah," replied Bella, "It's nicer than I remembered."_

_Ren__é__e laughed lightly, "Nice? It's always either cloudy or raining." _

"_I like the clouds…" whispered Bella with a soft sigh, and Ren__é__e raised her eyebrows as if she thought her daughter was insane._

"_My god, you're depressing. Charlie said you'd been moody, but you come to Florida and suddenly you're missing the dreary atmosphere? It's worse than I thought!" she exclaimed in mock horror, laying a hand on Bella's forehead. "You sure you feel ok? Lightheaded? Woozy?"_

_Bella rolled her eyes and playfully shook her mother off, "I just…like that it's not so hot all the time. A nice change after Phoenix." _

_Ren__é__e gestured grandly to the beach and palm trees, showcasing a perfect Floridian scene, "Oh, so this isn't good enough for you?" she teased. _

"_Hey, don't pretend that Florida never has storms," replied Bella, "And no, it's not. The whole state's like a sauna from hell."_

"_You get used to the heat," offered Ren__é__e._

"_You get used to the rain, too," answered Bella. _

_It was Ren__é__e's turn to roll her eyes. "I never thought I'd meet a teenager who'd prefer to live in a small, perpetually overcast town named after silverware as opposed to _Florida!_" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up for dramatic effect, "And now I have two, staying in my house. I take it Alice isn't exactly much of a sun-lover, either?" _

_Bella laughed at that, "No, not particularly. She's used to the rain, too."_

"_Ah, then you really _are_ perfect for each other."_

_Bella stopped walking suddenly and turned to face her mother, "What?"_

_Ren__é__e smiled knowingly and continued walking, her daughter staring after her, looking shocked. After a moment, she seemed to snap out of it and jogged to catch up to Ren__é__e._

"_I don't know what you're talking about," she finally said, her features coloring with a brilliant blush. _

"_You're a horrible liar. You get that from your father." Ren__é__e walked in thoughtful silence for a few moments, then turned to Bella with a soft expression. "Does she know you like her?"_

"_MOM!" exclaimed Bella, turning even redder, if said things were even possible. Ren__é__e chuckled in response. _

"_I'm sorry, honey. Did you really think I wouldn't notice? You should _see _yourself…" her voice faded from light and teasing into something much more serious and meaningful, "The way you look at her in complete awe, the way you seem to just…gravitate towards her. Your concern for her is evident, and hers is clear, too. She's so small, but even then…she radiates this strength that just makes her seem ten feet tall, especially when she's near you. It's like she'd protect you from anything." Bella's face was getting lighter and more astonished the more her mother spoke. She looked as if she was hanging onto every word. _

"_Whenever the two of you touch, you both just seem to relax, even if you weren't obviously tense before. When you aren't touching, you're practically leaning towards each other like magnets." She chuckled softly, but Bella said nothing, waiting for her mom to continue. _

"_Well, it's obvious to me that you're both completely smitten, and that neither of you have the slightest inkling for each other's feelings. And the way she looks at you…" Bella's head whipped up at this, her blush returning as Ren__é__e spoke, "There's so much longing and _need_ that it's almost heartbreaking. She has the strangest eyes I've ever seen…not just because of the color, but because of just how _expressive _they are…as if you could see the world's secrets just by looking at her eyes. You don't see that often in kids her age…heck, you don't see that often in anybody. And when she sees you it's like…like the secrets she can see have all been answered." _

_Bella slowed and stopped once again, staring at the cracked pavement below her. This time, her mother stopped as well, watching her patiently. _

"_I…" Bella started, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I love her, mom."_

"_I know," whispered Ren__é__e kindly, a hint of relief in her tone. She rested her hand on Bella's shoulder and gently led her forward._

"_You're…you're ok with that?"_

_Ren__é__e laughed lightly before squeezing Bella's shoulder fondly, "Love is love, Bella. You never showed much interest in boys back in Phoenix. I suspected for a while, but never said anything, of course. When you told me you were dating Edward, I was actually quite surprised." _

"_I didn't really love him," muttered Bella, kicking at a small rock. "But I…" she trailed off, clearly embarrassed. _

"_Go on," urged Ren__é__e gently. _

"_I liked Alice right away. I just felt drawn to her instantly, we became best friends so fast…when she came back to Forks, I felt so _complete_ that it shocked me, because I had thought Edward was the one I had been missing, but I was just…I was so wrong," Her eyes welled up with tears and she took a slight sniffle, and Ren__é__e pulled her into another hug. _

"_I really like her," she muttered softly to her daughter, "She's a nice girl and she's so…energetic. So _alive. _I think she'd be perfect for you." _

_The tears fell down Bella's face as she held onto her mom tighter, closing her eyes. "Thanks, mom…"_

* * *

I blinked, coming out of the vision instantly. A few seconds had passed, and Renée was looking at me strangely, possibly worried that I was going to be sick. Bella looked concerned as well as she sat forward, looking at me, "You alright?"

I nodded slowly, trying not to show the sheer amazement I was feeling. My soul was practically singing gospel hymns, I was so excited. I wrestled with the smile that threatened to burst out at any second, instead plastering a sickly expression on my face and frowning deeply, "Ugh, no. I think I should lie down a bit more. You two should go on a walk, though." _She loves me. She loves me. She loves me. _

Bella frowned, looking down at me and gently rubbing my back, "You sure?"

I nodded, "I just need to rest, it's ok." I looked at Bella sternly, then flicked my gaze to the back door quickly, making it look like I was implying a need to hunt. She gave a tiny nod of understanding before standing up and walking with Renée towards the door.

"We won't be too long, Alice," called Bella over her shoulder, probably telling me in not-so-many-words that I didn't have a lot of time.

"Alright," I answered back a minute before the door closed. The second their footsteps grew far enough away, I jumped off the couch and gave an excited squeal.

_She loves me. _

I started dancing around the house, humming loudly as I moved.

_She loves me. She loves me. _

My humming morphed into singing as I belted out whatever came into my head, closing my eyes as I danced faster.

_She loves me. She loves me. She loves me._

The words of the nonsensical song changed until I was singing Bella's name over and over again.

_She loves me. Sh-_

I opened my eyes and froze mid-pirouette as I saw a man who must have been Phil, standing two feet away in the doorway, staring at me with eyes the size of soccer balls.

I swear to god, I felt my face get hot.

I dropped my stance immediately and looked at him, "Uh…hi. I'm Alice."

**A/N: Ok, I love this ending. Does anyone else love this ending? I love this ending! xD**

**I also love Renée now. X3**

**All in all, This chapter made my soul immensely happy. :) **


	9. Chapter 9: Sensory Deprivation

**A/N: Wow! Got a LOT of reviews for that last chapter! I'm really glad you guys enjoyed it so much; some of the things you guys are saying are really flattering and inspire me to keep going. :) Not to mention...slowly inflating my ego to the size of a blimp. Wewt wewt?  
**

**I developed even worse writing ADD for this chapter, hence its lateness. What ended up inspiring me was a phone call from a friend I hadn't heard from in a while. (Well…phone call from a friend who was talking to another friend…it's complicated and weird. I'll shut up now.) My point is, I had to bash at about 4 mental brick walls to write this damn chapter. Declining mental state. I feel better now. Yay :)**

**Disclaimer: I OWN TWIL- *Brick'd* Ow, guess I don't. I tried. **

Chapter 9: Sensory Deprivation

As if it wasn't mortifying _enough_ that Bella's stepfather had walked in on me dancing and singing his stepdaughter's name, he also, unfortunately, noticed that I was moving a hell of a lot faster than anyone who wasn't on drugs should be moving. And the crazy dancing and nonsensical singing in an empty house apparently wasn't helping the "I'm-not-on-drugs" case. I mentally scolded myself for not paying more attention to my surroundings. Normally, I would've known Phil was coming ages ago. Oi.

"Really, Phil. I'm just very energetic, and very fast," I explained, flashing him what I hoped was a winning and clearly sober smile.

"I…noticed," he said, blinking rapidly, "If only I had _you_ on my baseball team…" I heard him mutter softly as he stepped through the entryway, still eying me warily. "I'd ask but...I'm not sure I want to know."

I laughed nervously and rubbed the back of my neck, "Would you mind if we just kept that our little secret? Better yet, shall we pretend it never even happened?"

He nodded graciously and moved into the kitchen, looking relieved. "So where are Renée and Bella?" he called over his shoulder.

I grinned broadly and leaned against the wall, sighing happily, "Out on a walk," I answered, "They should be back shortly."

"You hungry?" Phil asked, and my stomach did another 180 as I caught a whiff of the leftover steak as he pulled it out of the fridge.

"Oh, no, I already ate. Thanks, though."

"Just figured I'd ask," he said as he started fixing himself a plate. I decided that staying in such close proximity to the wretched human food was not a good idea at the moment, so I politely excused myself and skipped up the stairs with the excuse that I needed to finish unpacking.

As soon as I was in the guest bedroom, I fell down on the bed and buried my face in the pillow, smiling as I detected Bella's scent. My body was thrumming with happiness as I recalled Bella's confession. _"I liked Alice right away. I just felt drawn to her instantly…I love her, mom..." _

Part of me couldn't believe that she returned my feelings. It was like my perfect dream come true, simply too incredible to be real. My mind raced, sifting through a million and a half ways of utilizing this new-found knowledge.

I wanted to tell her. I want to tell her _so badly_ that the words were right there, on the end of my tongue, begging to be spoken out loud. _I love you, Bella. You mean the world to me. _

But I wouldn't speak them. I knew that right away. I had heard her say the words once, but only to her mother. She hadn't known I'd been listening in, she had no idea that I knew her secret, that I held the same one in reverse…

Maybe it was the part of me that felt monstrous; the part that simply didn't believe it was possible for anyone to love me, but, for whatever reason, I wanted to make her say the words to me. I wanted her to be the one to break the ice. Besides, she may still be torn up about Edward, and I didn't want to rush her. We didn't have eternity yet, I know, but…maybe we would. Just maybe.

I took the pillow out from under my head and clutched it tightly, still breathing in Bella's scent. She would be back soon. _Just wait a little bit longer,_ I told myself. _You've waited to hear this for so long. You can hold out a little bit longer. Just a little bit. _

For the first time since I had laid eyes on Bella Swan and felt the first gentle stirrings of love in my dead heart, I dared to hope.

* * *

It was about half an hour later that I heard Bella and Renée walking up to the front door. I quickly dropped the pillow and bolted to the bedroom door, dashing out into the hallway before I froze at the top of the stairs and calmed myself. _Slow down. Phil already thinks you're snorting cocaine. _

I moved down the stairs at excruciatingly slow human speed as Bella walked in the door and found my eyes immediately. The room fell away.

I have no idea how long we stood like that; me with one foot still on the bottom step, her with her hand on the doorway – almost as if she was steadying herself – just staring into each other's eyes, but we both reluctantly turned away when Renée stepped forward with Phil.

"Alice, this is Phil, my husband."

"We've…met," said Phil, skipping a beat before remembering our earlier agreement. Renée threw him a questioning glance, but he shook his head slightly. I simply nodded the affirmative and pretended not to notice the exchange.

"Hey, Phil," said Bella, smiling at her stepfather.

Phil nodded in acknowledgement, "Hey, Bella."

An awkward silence filled the room before Renée broke it, clapping her hands together and looking excited. "I know you two are only here for two days, but I have _got_ to show you some of these really cool shops downtown…"

I smiled and grew very excited at the prospect of shopping, while Bella groaned loudly beside me.

"Two against one," I giggled triumphantly as I turned to her.

Her expression changed as our eyes met again, and now I found that I could read her in ways I couldn't before. There was a fire of longing in her eyes and a reserve in her stance. She stood awkwardly and kept fidgeting; giving me the impression that she was holding herself back. Her hesitance was so adorable. I couldn't help myself, I reached over and took her hand in mine, smiling even wider when she blushed brightly.

"I take it you don't have the same strange aversion to shopping as Bella?" asked Renée, breaking me out of my reverie. What we were talking about? Oh! Shopping! _Oh my god…did Bella just distract me from _shopping? It was worse than I thought.

"Uhh…yes! I mean…no, not at all. I _love_ shopping," I said, none-too-gracefully.

Renée chuckled and launched into a lengthy description of some of the best places downtown. As my excitement increased, Bella's terror mounted.

"Phil. _Help me. _I'm begging you," she pleaded, staring at her stepfather as if he were a life ring in the middle of the ocean.

Phil turned and wandered into the living room, muttering something about the world cup.

"You're throwing me to the wolves, Phil!" she called after him. I couldn't help but giggle.

"Come on, Bella…it won't be _that_ bad. I'll only make you get a couple dozen outfits," I said, throwing a mischievous grin at her.

Bella's head shot up towards the living room, "Who's playing tonight? Are we still in?"

"Eliminated," came the absent-minded reply.

I rolled my eyes, "You are _not _choosing sports over _shopping,_" I teased, knowing full well she hated both.

She looked back at me and her face fell, "No fair. No _fair._ That stupid pout of yours…"

I grinned.

"…Fine," she finally muttered. I squealed and clapped my hands together.

Renée observed all of this with a touch of amusement on her face and a glint of knowing in her eyes. "We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning," she said cheerfully. "In the mean time…I want to show you both my garden."

Bella looked up at her in confusion, "You didn't say anything about a garden…"

Renée led us towards the back door and through the small backyard. "I know, I wanted to keep it a secret. I didn't know when you were coming of course, but I really wanted to show you whenever you could manage to make it down."

My keen eyes caught sight of a small path through the hedges at the other end of the yard. We followed Renée a little ways down the path until it opened up into a beautiful garden enclosed on all sides by 10-foot tall hedges. An elegant koi pond sat in the center, full of bright fish of all different colors. Lining the hedges were several shrubs and small trees with assortments of beautiful flowers on them. I closed my eyes and took in a deep sniff, delighting in the sweet smells that tickled my nose.

"Wow, mom…this is amazing!" said Bella, taking a few steps towards the koi pond and glancing around the enclosed space with a look of awe on her face.

Renée beamed, obviously proud with her daughter's assessment. "You like it?"

Bella nodded, then turned her eyes on me. I felt her gaze while I stepped forward to the koi pond and peered down into the depths, watching the golden fish within swim in slow, lazy circles. "It's beautiful…" I whispered softly, transfixed by the hypnotic movement of the koi.

Renée seemed thrilled, making me chuckle internally in amusement at her childlike wonder. "I'm really glad you think so, I –"

She was cut off by Phil's voice, echoing across the backyard, "_Ren__é__e? Have you seen my cell phone?"_

Renée rolled her eyes and excused herself, flitting back down the pathway. I sat down cross-legged on the edge of the koi pond and sighed happily, closing my eyes and letting the smell of the garden calm me down. I finally understood why people loved these things so much; I felt completely relaxed just by sitting here, listening to the soft movement of the water.

Bella's laugh reached my ear, and I smiled, but didn't open my eyes, "What's so funny?"

"You," she replied, and I heard her sit on the ground next to me, "The way you're sitting. You could be a statue of some sort of Zen master."

"Ohhhhhmmmm…" I began, and we both burst out laughing.

"You're a dork," she teased. I grinned in response.

I felt her rest her head on my shoulder and I opened my eyes, bringing one hand up to her hair and playing with it absently. I snaked my other hand behind her and started rubbing gentle circles into her lower back, causing her to hum softly in appreciation. Egged on by her response, I slowly slipped my hand under the hem of her shirt, resting it on her back briefly before continuing my massage. Bella smiled and turned her face into my neck, and I felt her face heat up a bit at my actions.

Several minutes passed before she laughed quietly and whispered, "You're purring," against my neck.

Was I? I hadn't noticed. I rested my cheek on the top of her head and made soft meowing sounds, earning a half-hearted slap. "Go back to the purring. It's nice."

I smiled into her hair, pressing a soft kiss onto the top of her head. The hand behind her moved slower now, pressing a tiny bit harder into the muscles of her back. "It's not exactly something I can turn on and off," I answered, "Something has to please me."

"Hmm…" she said thoughtfully. I felt her hand move up to the back of my neck and she started scratching the skin there, giggling as I closed my eyes and let out a continual purr. "You're like an overgrown cat made out of stone," she whispered, kissing my neck gently, which only caused me to purr louder.

I heard Renée approaching the garden from behind us, but did not withdraw my hand or make any other move to distance myself from Bella. She knew how I felt about her daughter; it hardly made a difference to me if she saw me with Bella like this. Bella must have agreed, because even when Renée's footsteps on the stone pathway became loud enough for human ears, she didn't move, although I did feel her face heat up a few more degrees.

I heard Renée stop as she came in sight of us, her heart rate increasing slightly. Neither of us turned to acknowledge her, and I thought that, in that moment, I would give anything to have Edward's ability and be able to read her mind. She let out a very soft, wistful sigh that I knew Bella wouldn't have heard, then she turned and busied herself examining one of the bushes by the entrance.

I decided to break the silence and reluctantly slipped my hand out from under the hem of Bella's shirt, turning to look over my shoulder, "It really is a lovely garden, Renée."

She looked up from her position at one of the pink flowered bushes and smiled warmly at me. "Thank you, Alice. We really should get inside, it's supposed to rain soon," she said, glancing up at the clouds warily.

"It's following us," I joked.

Bella snorted and moved to stand up, but lost her balance.

"Whoa – _whoa!_" she yelled as she slipped and fell backwards towards the koi pond.

"Bella!" I called, automatically diving to save her. We raised an almighty splash as I caught her in the center of the shallow pool. I stood there, holding her in my arms just out of the water while she breathed heavily, her heart racing from her sudden slip.

"Bella! Are you alright?" yelled Renée, rushing to the side of the pond.

"I…" started Bella, staring up at me as I looked down at her with concern, "I-I'm fine, yeah…just slipped."

I lifted her out of the pool and set her down on her feet, causing Renée's jaw to drop. "My _god_, Alice!" she exclaimed, "You're so _strong!_ And fast…Jeez! How did you manage to _catch her?_"

Bella stood there dripping and looked at me with wide eyes while I mentally scolded myself.

_How about you like, you know, NOT risk revealing yourself constantly?_ I thought. But Bella had fallen…of course I had to catch her. That had been purely instinctual.

"I'm quite fast," I explained as naturally as possible, "And Bella's not _that_ heavy."

"Gee, thanks," said Bella, making a face at me while she wrung out her hair. I shook myself rapidly – though not _too _rapidly – which sent a cascade of water droplets through the garden.

"I take it back, you're more like a dog than a cat," said Bella, and I stuck my tongue out at her in response.

Renée was still staring at me, but she shook her head rapidly and turned away, leading us all back to the house. Bella caught my hand as we walked and I grinned, despite the fact that I had just ruined a perfectly good blouse.

* * *

"Well _that_ could've gone smoother," said Bella, grabbing a towel from the closet and moving into the bathroom, "I think I gave half those fish heart attacks."

I chuckled and grabbed another towel, standing by the bathroom door. "You're worried about the _fish_? Please," I snorted, "You should've seen the look on your face when you slipped," I teased.

"Shut up!" called Bella playfully as she turned the shower on.

"That's no way to treat your savior!" I pouted.

She heaved an exaggerated sigh, "Fine then, O Great Savior. Whatever shall I do to repay you?"

I grinned and decided to go for it, "Doesn't the hero usually win a kiss?" I called.

A minute later, she poked her out of the bathroom door and pecked me on the cheek before disappearing again, "Better?"

I grinned broadly into the empty room and held my cheek where she'd kissed it, "Much."

A few minutes later, the water stopped. I heard her step out of the shower, then the door opened and…wow. I really should have done some mental preparation or something.

Bella walked into the room wrapped in a towel, beads of water still clinging to her skin. It took a supreme mastery of my willpower not to pounce on her right then. She walked towards her half of the dresser and turned to look at me, blushing brightly. "Your turn," she whispered, and I forced myself to nod, tearing my gaze away from the beautiful sight before me and stepping into the bathroom.

* * *

The thunder cracked loudly in my sensitive ears, but the sound sparked sadness instead of fear. Not long ago, had this weather descended upon my family and I, we would have immediately dropped whatever we were doing and head outside to play baseball. As it was, I was thousands of miles from home, and two of my family members would most likely be gone by the time I returned home. I felt a brief pang of homesickness as the sounds drew nearer. Despite the noise, I was soothed greatly by the howling storm; the constant drum of rain on the roof, the droning, ominous rolling of the thunder, the way the air seemed to thicken into something almost palpable as nature's fury became more and more intense…

In my arms, Bell trembled gently, muttering gibberish in a quiet, frightened tone. I pulled her closer, listening as her heart rate and breathing accelerated while her non-words became frightened cries. Her terror seemed to surround me as my instincts kicked in, sending me into a state of hyper-awareness. Logically, I knew that the urge to defend was ridiculous: it was a _thunderstorm_, for god's sake. Still, Bella was frightened, and my body tensed with this knowledge.

Her eyes shot open and she glanced wildly around at the dark room while I whispered soothingly in her ear, "Shh…it's alright, Bella, it's just a storm. I'm right here."

"A-Alice…" she whispered, her voice breaking as her hands sought me out. She first touched on the fabric of my tank top and gripped it tightly with both fists, turning herself so that she could hide her face in my neck. I stroked her hair soothingly as a blinding flash lit up the room, causing two things to happen at once.

The first was that Bella gave a tiny jump and held onto me tighter. The other was that the room disappeared, darkening instantly as the flash left my eyes temporarily blinded. I blinked rapidly, trying to bring my sight back, but it did not come. Fear struck me now as the storm seemed to grow louder, the thunder crashing around us in all directions. Never before had any of my senses been overloaded to the point of not working; my vampire night vision was flawless. I held onto Bella in the darkness, closing my eyes to escape the room I could no longer see clearly.

_What's happening to me…?_

My memory of the asylum rushed back to me now, and the thunder sounded almost like far-off screams in the night. A frightened, animalistic cry echoed off the walls, and it took me several seconds to realize that I had made the sound. Another blinding flash lit up the back of my eyelids as I whispered Bella's name, suddenly just as frightened as she was.

"Bella, Bella…"

I opened my eyes and tried in vain to see into the shadows around me, but my vision was still too overwhelmed. I felt like a frightened animal, cornered in the darkness. Darkness that i should have been comfortable in, but wasn't.

"Alice…" Bella spoke my name softly, relaxing my tensed nerves slightly, and now I felt her move.

Her hands traveled from my sides up to my neck and came to rest on my cheeks, still trembling gently. I didn't understand what she was doing until I felt her shifting, leaning forward.

"I love you…" she whispered softly as her burning lips found mine in the darkness.

**A/N: …Happyface? **

**Gotta love Floridian thunderstorms. I grew up in Miami between the ages of 1 and 2, and I have some vague memories of watching the lightning from our 24-story apartment building. My mom says that the intense storms were the only things that got me to sit still as a toddler. That was part of the inspiration for the end of this chapter, although as a baby, I somehow doubt that my experiences were nearly as awesome as this one :D**

…**I talk too much. Just hope you enjoyed the chapter! xD**


	10. Chapter 10: A Matter of Instinct

**A/N: So I saw Eclipse and it was awesome :) They're getting better with every movie. Probably due to the constant director changes, ha. **

**I just got a new PC game that I got hooked on, then I realized I should probably stop killing little pixilated men and start writing the next chapter. Lol.**

**I don't like this one very much. Something about it pisses me off, and I was a little rushed thanks to my mom. Bah Dx  
**

**Disclaimer: In an alternate universe, I own Twilight. In the same alternate universe, giraffes can talk.**

Chapter 10: A Matter of Instinct

I'm not used to being surprised. Maybe once a decade, something minor would slip through my visions and catch me a little off-guard, and everyone would laugh at the poor little psychic who was "losing her powers." In light of recent events, those jokes seemed extremely unnecessary, especially since I truly did appear to be going insane. The past several weeks had forced me to quickly adopt a new outlook on life, one in which I was more used to being surprised. In light of my failing visions and wavering control, I had subconsciously begun to accept the fact that there just might be things in life that could occur without forewarning.

No amount of subconscious mind-training could have prepared me for this. Not even close. Still, of all the surprises I'd recently received, this was by far the most pleasant.

Her lips were impossibly soft against mine as we kissed, sending delicious tingles throughout my body. She was gentle and hesitant, but I felt her relax in my arms when I didn't pull away. Our lips fell into a slow rhythm as my mind reeled from the incredibleness of my current situation. Bella had just told me she loved me. Bella was kissing me. Oh _god._

She pulled away then, breathing heavily, and I slowly eased my eyes open, relieved to find that I could see her almost as clearly as I could before the flash. And she looked…incredible. Her chocolate eyes were smoldering with emotion as they met mine, brimming with hope and love. There was also, buried underneath, a thrill of fear. She was visibly trembling as she stared into my eyes, which was probably the only part of my body she could see in the dim light. Her heart rate took off at triple speed, pounding in my ears at a volume to rival that of the rumbling thunder, further displaying her worry.

That wouldn't do at all.

I slowly lifted my hands to her flushed cheeks and leaned forward, bringing my forehead to hers. I could feel her hot breath on my face, and I felt drawn to her incredible warmth. Slowly, I shifted, bringing her closer to my body so I could lean in and whisper my secret into her ear. The words were inside me, clamoring to be set free, yet when I spoke, they came out softly and effortlessly, causing my human's already elated heart rate to race far beyond the normal limit.

"I love you, too."

"Alice…" she spoke my name with a soft moan that made the beast inside of me growl in pleasure. I nipped at her ear in response, biting gently as she drew in a sharp breath. Her hands were on me then, her nails digging into my back through the fabric of my tank top. It felt so _good._ I purred softly against her ear before I pulled back to capture her lips again.

Unfortunately, my cell phone had other ideas.

_"You and me baby ain't nothing but mammals, so let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel!" _

I froze and pulled away, glaring at the phone on the nightstand with a look that I'm sure would have killed it if it wasn't inanimate. Bella blushed and tried to stifle a giggle, presumably at my ringtone.

I grabbed the phone, glanced at the screen, and flicked it open, unable to keep the intense annoyance out of my voice, "Emmet, don't even think about touching my ring –"

The world around me ceased to exist as a vision hit me full in the face.

_Victoria stood on a hill overlooking Forks airport, anger smoldering in her crimson eyes. Her lips curled back in a frustrated snarl as she turned north, taking off at full speed through the trees. _

"…tone," I finished absently, blinking as the world snapped back into focus.

"What did you see?" asked Emmet urgently, completely ignoring my half-assed threat.

I answered his question with one of my own, "You didn't get her, did you?" I watched Bella as I spoke, but she only looked at me in confusion, unable to decipher my words at the rate I was speaking.

"No," replied Emmet, "Little bitch escaped right down the boundary line. The wolves were on her tail, of course, and one of them fucking _attacked me. _Couldn't continue the damn chase 'cause everyone got all defensive all of a sudden."

"Attacked you?" I questioned. That didn't make much sense, unless…"Oh for the love of…" I grit my teeth, "_Emmet!_ Did you cross the line?"

"No!" he insisted defensively, his voice shooting up an octave. "I was totally on my own side, Ali!"

"Emmet…"

Silence.

"Fine. Maybe. I dunno, I was focusing on getting the redheaded bitch!"

I sighed heavily, "I appreciate that, Em, but please try to avoid antagonizing the wolves, alright?"

"Fine. Whatever," he grumbled like a child, "We'll have her skewered before you get back, though, I swear!"

I recalled the vision and shook my head in frustration. "No you won't, Em."

"What!" he growled, "Look, I _know_ I screwed up last time, but there's six of us _and _a whole pack of flee-bitten –"

"No, Emmet. You won't get her before we get back because she's not attacking again."

Pause. "Huh?"

"She tracked Bella to Forks airport. She can't track us to Jacksonville, obviously, because we flew, but she knows that Bella's not in the area anymore. I saw her run off; she's going to wait until we get back."

More silence.

"Well, _shit_," he growled.

"Look, just…" I fumbled to come up with some sort of plan of action, "Track her escape route. Just see where she went and how far away she got, roughly. Make sure the area is safe, and keep guarding Charlie. We'll be back on Sunday."

"Right!" said Emmet, clearly glad to have at least _something _to do, "I'll pass on word to everyone. Try not to bite your human, Ali!" He joked before he hung up. I rolled my eyes and put the phone back on the bedside table.

"What was that?" asked Bella, worry in her eyes as she saw the frustration in my expression.

I sighed, knowing it would be best to tell her the truth. "Victoria got away. Emmet stepped over the treaty line, and everyone got defensive and abandoned the chase. She won't be back while we're gone because she tracked us to Forks airport."

Bella's eyes widened, but I quickly clarified, "She won't find us here, Bella. Flying leaves no trail."

She nodded slowly and bit down on her lip, looking even more anxious. I heard her heart beating erratically and I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around her tightly. She rested her head on my shoulder and took a deep breath to calm herself. I knew that she was more worried about the rest of the family than she was about her own safety. Truthfully, I was, too. Something about Victoria made me feel very uneasy.

"I'm sorry…" whispered Bella softly, and I looked down at her in confusion.

"You're all the way over here, instead of defending your family," she explained. _Christ, can the girl read my mind?_

I frowned and hid my face in Bella's hair, taking in her incredible scent. "You _are_ my family," I whispered, just loud enough for her to hear over the rain.

She turned and looked at me, doubt flickering across her face. "But…I'm human," she whispered softly, dropping her eyes to the sheets.

"It doesn't matter," I answered truthfully, "You're one of us."

She beamed at that and leaned in to kiss me again. Right before she could, however, the room lit up in another blinding flash and I winced, causing her lips to brush my cheek instead.

"Alice?" she asked, her voice nearly lost to the sounds of the rain despite the fact that she was right in front of me.

I blinked several times to dispel the strange colors and shapes that danced in front of my vision. "Sorry," I muttered, "Something's really wrong with me these days…"

"Was it…something I…" she trailed off, her voice sounding fearful and uncertain.

"No, no!" I assured her, scrunching my eyes shut tighter and rubbing them with my hands, "It's just…it happened earlier, too. The lightning's bothering my eyes or something."

"Lightning can bother your eyes?" she asked. I detected a frown in her voice, and confirmed my suspicions a moment later when I opened my eyes to almost-clear sight.

"I…well, no," I admitted lamely, "At least, it never has before."

Her palm rested on my forehead then, as if she was checking for a temperature. "Can vampires get sick or something?"

I couldn't help but chuckle, "Other than vomiting your putrid human food, no."

She didn't return the laugh, but instead flipped her hand so that the back was now on my forehead, "I don't know, Alice. You seem…warmer."

My eyes widened and I stared at her incredulously. Come to think of it, her hand _did_ feel slightly less warm to my skin than it normally did. I carefully took Bella's hand from my forehead and brought it to my lips, kissing it softly. I tried to hide my growing concern at my strange symptoms. Headaches, loss of vision, slight temperature…maybe I _was_ getting sick, though the concept perplexed me. Still, I didn't want to worry Bella. The poor girl had enough on her mind as is.

"It's alright, Bella. I'll ask Carlisle when I get home, but I feel fine."

She nodded, and I leaned back onto the pillow, gently pulling her down with me. She lay on top of me comfortably, giggling softly as a soft purr escaped my lips from our close contact. My mind shifted from thoughts of Victoria and my declining physical state and instead focused on much more pleasant ideas…namely, instant replays of Bella's confession and our kiss.

We lay in silence for several minutes, simply enjoying the feel of each other. Her question came out of the blue, so soft that I didn't _hear _it; I felt the words as she whispered them into my chest: "How long?"

I knew what she meant. "When Edward brought you home on that first day and I saw you from the top of the stairs. You looked so nervous and I thought, 'I need to comfort her.' And I hugged you, and it felt…so different than anything I'd felt before. Amazing. And your smell…my god. I'd smelt you before in school, and it was enough to make me feel drawn to you instantly, but having you that close was…something else entirely." My fingers twisted in her hair as I contemplated telling her that she was my singer. I quickly decided against the idea for now; it was two in the morning, after all, and I was certain that she'd had enough for one night. Er, insanely early morning, I guess.

"That long?" she whispered in amazement, "I…I never thought you felt that way at first, I didn't even realize my own feelings, honestly. I guess…once you left and I started writing to you, it dawned on me that I was missing you so much more than I was missing Edward, and then you got back and…" she trailed off, looking up at me with flaming cheeks, wearing an apologetic expression, "I'm sorry, I know this is so fast. You just broke up with Jasper, and…I don't know, Alice. I just couldn't hold back any more."

I placed a finger on her lips and nodded in understanding, "It's alright, Bella. I've been waiting for you since the moment I first saw you. I just wanted to know that _you_ were ready…" I closed the distance between us and kissed her softly again.

I swear to god, her smile could've lit the sun. I wouldn't be surprised if it did. However, despite her glowing happiness, human needs have a way of making themselves known, and her smile quickly turned into a rather impressive yawn, causing me to giggle.

"Sleeeeep, little one," I whispered, "You have a long and arduous task ahead of you in the morrow."

She looked up at me with a blank expression. "In the morrow," she deadpanned.

"What?" I whined, "I'm _old,"_ I drew out the word 'old' and made a grimace to highlight my point. She just rolled her eyes and yawned wider, snuggling into my chest.

The last thing I remember was the sound of her slowing heartbeat as she drifted off, and then I felt myself slipping, slowly…falling…darkness…

* * *

_A little girl was standing in a dark meadow, frantically looking through the trees. With a shock, I realized that the little girl was me. She looked to be about seven years old, with black hair that was slightly longer than mine is now. Her eyes were a piercing blue, and she wore a small, lacy dress that made her look almost doll-like. _

Not 'her', _I mentally corrected, _'me.'

_I watched my terror grow stronger as the last of the evening light filtered through the trees and then retired beneath the horizon, darkening my surroundings by several shades. _

"_Mother!" I cried, "Father!" _

_Only distant laughter reached my ears. I whirled around to face the direction I thought I heard the sounds, then faced the opposite direction as the laughter sounded from the other side. Tears ran down my cheeks now as the sounds of laughter morphed, turning into a repeating chant, all saying one word: "Alice. Alice. Alice…"_

"Alice? _Alice!_"

I woke with a start, my eyes darting around the room to take in my perfectly normal surroundings. Wait…I _woke?_

My gaze fell on Bella, who was kneeling on the bed next to me and had her hands on my shoulders. She was staring at me with a mixture of amazement and relief. "You were…calling out in your sleep," she explained hesitantly, as if she was afraid of how I'd react to the news.

Sleep. _Sleep._ I'd been _sleeping._

"H-how long?" I asked her, my voice carrying an uncharacteristic tremor that I now fought against.

"I woke up about ten minutes ago," she said nervously, "And you were…well, asleep. At first I thought it was vision, but you didn't come out of it, and you started trembling, and then you were…" she trailed off, biting down on her lip.

"Go on," I coaxed.

"You…you were calling for your parents, Alice."

I nodded slowly, feeling dazed. Suddenly, I became all-too-aware of one annoying and possibly dangerous fact: I was thirsty. Unbelievably so.

I winced as a waft of Bella's incredible scent reached my nose and quickly halted my breath. My thirst was a force inside of me, sensing a savory meal in front of me and turning on my predatory instincts. At the same time, I wrestled with those instincts. _No. This is Bella. Not for eating. _

"Alice?" asked Bella with concern, catching the strained look on my face. My eyes darkened so quickly at the sound of her voice that I could practically feel it. I dug my fingers into the sheets, effectively shredding them as I tried to get a handle on myself. Some part of my brain knew that I couldn't just get up and bolt for the window, because the sudden lunge would only heighten my hunting urges. I squeezed my eyes shut and continued to hold my breath, willing the fire to recede.

I heard Bella stand up and take a step back. I could not focus on her right now, I had to think of something else…

Birds were chirping outside, palm leaves were rustling together in the faint breeze, Bella was smelling beyond delicious – _No!_

I dug my fingers tighter into the sheets, locking my teeth together as venom filled my mouth. My eyes pried themselves open and looked up at the girl across the room. She didn't look afraid in the slightest, only concerned. Concerned for me. There was no thought spared for the monumental danger she was currently in, only for the fact that I was in pain. Our eyes locked, and as I stared at her, I found the will to overthrow my inner monster for just a moment.

"Hunt…" I managed to whisper past my scorching throat, and Bella nodded, glancing towards the open window.

As soon as her eyes were off of me, my instincts snapped back into place and I lunged for her. Another second…another instant and the girl's blood will be in my mouth, quenching the burn.

_No._

_Bella. _

_NO!_

I turned ninety degrees in the air, my gaze locking onto the window and diving through it in one fluid motion.

I didn't stop for about a hundred miles.

* * *

_Floridian animals are so freaking _small! I mentally complained as I buried my teeth into a young alligator. The flavor was quite bitter compared to what I was used to, but the fire in my throat waned slightly. All too soon, the body ran dry, and I sniffed the air to search for more, feeling a pang of homesickness as lamented the lack of elk in this part of the country.

I went on a frenzy, drinking nearly twice as much as normal. It wasn't until I felt completely and utterly stuffed that I collapsed on a rocky beach along the coast, staring out at the restless ocean. My mind, now more civilized due to being fed, started racing.

_I can't believe I went for Bella like that…_

_I was SLEEPING! What the hell! _

_What was with that dream? _

_What are we going to do about Victoria? _

I felt myself filling with intense anger, a feeling I wasn't very used to. My hands clenched and I sprang across the rocks suddenly, burying my right fist into a palm tree with a frustrated, piercing cry. I breathed heavily as the tree hit the ground, attempting to calm myself down. I didn't want to return to Renée's and face Bella after what I had nearly done to her. Still, my sense zeroed in on the far-off sound of a heartbeat. I moved towards it unconsciously, as I knew I always would. There was no staying away from Bella for too long.

She was leaning out of the window when I returned, waiting for me. I slowed as I approached the backyard, crossing the lawn at human speed, my eyes on Bella. Her previously neutral expression broke into a smile as soon as she caught my gaze, but I quickly lowered my head and stared at the ground, unable to look her in the eye. I stopped at the bottom of her window and sat down in the grass.

"I'm sorry," I said, just loud enough for her to hear, "I don't know what got into me."

Several seconds passed and she said nothing. I bit down on my lip in worry.

"Am I dead?" she finally whispered. "Am I screaming in agony? Am I hurt badly enough to be put in a hospital?"

"Bella…"

"I'm not, Alice. I'm fine. It might have been the sleeping. Humans are usually really hungry when they wake up. You're just not used to it."

I raised my head to look at her. She was looking at me with firm, burning trust in her eyes. I wish I held the same trust for myself. "Bella, do you have any idea how close I was…"

"You'd never kill me," she said, conviction ringing in her words. "I feel it, Alice."

I couldn't help but laugh at that one, "Who's the psychic, here?"

She smiled back, resting her elbows on the windowsill and leaning out a bit farther. "I don't need to be psychic. I know you won't hurt me."

I sighed heavily, partly in relief, and partly in frustration. I was glad that Bella wasn't holding my actions against me, but part of me wished she had a stronger instinct for self-preservation. Although, if she did, then I wouldn't be allowed in her life. I chose, for the moment, to suck it up and be grateful that she wasn't angry.

"Are we going shopping, or not?" she asked, catching me off guard. I stared at her incredulously.

"I- but, you…" I struggled to find words, thrown off by her sudden proposal. "You hate shopping!" I exclaimed.

She laughed, the sound ringing in my ears like a beautiful melody. "I found something I hate more. Gloomy Alice," she stuck her tongue out me. Despite the teasing in her words, I was secretly touched.

She backed up and I launched myself through the window effortlessly, grinning at her from my perch on the sill. "You're in for it. You know that, right?"

She closed the distance between us and kissed me softly, nearly causing me to fall right back out the window. But I am Alice Cullen. I do not fall out of windows.

"I'll manage," she whispered against my lips.

**A/N: Sorry again for the long update! Mom keeps taking away my computer. Sadface. **

**By the way, Alice's ringtone is "The Bad Touch" by the Bloodhound Gang. Emmet's idea of a joke. I don't own that, either. **

**Hope you enjoyed! As always, read and tell me what you think!**


	11. Chapter 11: Sudden Departure

**A/N: Just a heads-up: I'll be on vacation in Vermont for the next week, so the next chapter will be a bit delayed. Apologies :( **

**Big thank you to all of my reviewers, you guys seriously make my day. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. If I did, no one would have ever read it, and therefore there would be no fanfiction for it. And that would make me sad. **

Chapter 11: Sudden Departure

Never in my life had I ever been so happy to see an overcast sky. The mood, however, was not returned by Renée, who frowned deeply when she looked up at the clouds. "And here I had wanted to show you two what the sun looks like," she huffed, searching the living room for her purse.

"The…sun?" I inquired curiously, playing along. "I think I may've heard of such of a thing once. My father told me the legends – it's under the table, by the way."

Renée chuckled at my words before whirling around and zeroing in on the space under the coffee table with a triumphant, "A-ha!" She retrieved the bag and reached in to search for her keys. "I'm all ready. We can leave as soon as Bella comes down."

I was unable to keep a broad grin from spreading across my face at the mention of Bella's name. This fact was not lost on Renée, who raised one eyebrow at me before returning my grin. "You told her, didn't you?"

The question did not throw me off; I'd known that Renée had been contemplating the recent conversation with her daughter and wondering how to approach the situation. "She told me, actually."

Renée's other eyebrow shot up. "She told you?" I nodded for confirmation. "Wow…" she whispered, "I never would've thought she'd have the courage. You're so much more outgoing - I sort of assumed you'd be the one telling her."

I laughed at that, "She caught me by surprise too, honestly."

She nodded absently and glanced out the window for a minute. "If Bella actually broke the ice first, she must like you more than I originally thought. She's quite shy," Renée spoke half to herself before turning back to me, "But I guess you know that already."

I tilted my head to the side in thought. "Bella's shy, yes. But she can also be very outspoken in situations involving things she really cares about. She can be quite headstrong if motivated," I noted softly.

Renée nodded again, "Exactly. That's why I say she's more serious about you than I thought." Her eyes grew distant as she spoke, a hint of worry touching her expression.

"You're alright with this?" I asked calmly, wanting to hear her full opinion on the matter.

"Oh yes, of course," she said quickly, "I just…it's difficult to watch my daughter grow up. I've never seen her act this way around anyone before. It's…surreal, in a way. Almost like I'm looking into a mirror and seeing myself when I was younger…" her voice trailed off and her eyes strayed again to the window before she continued, "But at the same time, it's so different. Bella's so much more sensible than I was at her age. Hell, she's more sensible than I am now. I know that she's thought this through. I know that she didn't make this decision lightly, because she never does. I wasn't that way. I loved recklessly. My heart made decisions on a whim. I didn't think. I wasn't very sensible when it came to matters of the heart."

She paused, leaning against the glass of the window. I said nothing, knowing there was more.

"Bella's different," she finally said, "So different. I can see it in the way she looks at you. I wasn't able to love that fiercely at her age. I wasn't nearly as…certain, as sure of myself. I changed my mind so many times. She doesn't. Her heart doesn't change. That's why I was surprised, at first, when she left Edward, but I realized it when I talked to her. I don't think she loved him. I think she thought she did, but Bella's never been very good at understanding herself, only other people. She's always been so selfless. And," she glanced over at me warily, "fragile."

I nodded in understanding.

"I don't want to see her get hurt, Alice. It was hard enough when your family left. She was devastated. I know you didn't mean for it to happen," she added when her eyes caught the deeply apologetic look on my face, "but it was hard for her, and even for me; especially having her so far away when it happened. Charlie really didn't know how to handle it. I'm telling you this because I know that she won't. She hates to hurt people, and she knows that it would hurt you if she told you how she felt when your family left. Bella's a lot more fragile than she lets on."

She sighed heavily, "I talk too much. To answer your question: yes, I'm fine with this. I'm just being silly."

"Not being silly," I whispered softly, "being a mom."

Renée smiled warmly and pulled me into a tight hug. "I'll be careful with her, Renée," I promised just as I heard Bella heading down the stairs.

"I know," answered Renée softly, letting me go as we both turned to face Bella. She looked slightly terrified. I found it adorable.

"You know, it's not like we're going to cook you for dinner," I teased, "you really don't have to look so frightened." I crossed the room quickly and took her hand in mine, causing her to relax and smile at me.

"I know, but you both get seriously into it…one of you I could handle, but both? I might have to lock myself in the dressing room." I rolled my eyes at that and gently tugged her out the door, Renée following close behind.

* * *

This was torture.

No, this was worse than torture.

I stood outside of Bella's dressing room, gripping the clothes rack tightly. I couldn't help the fact that I kept scanning her future…which was giving me glimpses of her. Changing.

I received a vision of her completely exposed back. The clothes rack cracked easily under my fist. I quickly rolled it several feet away so no one would get suspicious before I leaned back against the wall next to the dressing room door and tried to keep myself from receiving visions of Bella.

It wasn't working.

"I'm so not wearing this, Alice," whined Bella from inside the changing room.

"Yes you are," I sang back, giggling as a frustrated groan reached my ears.

"It's so _short!_" she complained as she stepped out of the dressing room.

I turned to my right to watch her move through the door, my breath catching in my throat as I did so. Bella was dressed in a red V-neck blouse and jean miniskirt. She was right, it was shirt. Deliciously so. Unable to control myself, my eyes flicked downward to her ass. Oh god, kill me now.

"Alice?" she whispered incredulously, bringing my attention back to her face, "Alice, you're blushing!" Her own face reddened at this declaration.

"No I'm not!" I said indignantly, "Vampires don't blush!"

"But –"

"Trick of the light. Love that skirt, you're getting it. Here, try this," I said hastily, shoving the first article of clothing I could grab into her hands and shooing her back through the doorway, closing it quickly.

_No way. _

I turned to look at the huge mirror that was set up by the dressing rooms and stared at my face. It was pink. Not nearly as pink as Bella's could get, but it was definitely pink. I raised my hand to touch my cheek, my confusion doubling as I realized my hand was shaking. I stilled it quickly and glanced back to the mirror to find that my paleness had returned.

_Bella Swan, what are you doing to me? _I thought to myself.

"Um…Alice?" came a tentative voice from the dressing room. "This is a men's shirt…"

* * *

"I wasn't planning on talking to you until after we got home, but things are just too weird," I whispered hastily into the phone.

"Tell me what you can," replied Carlisle calmly. Leave it to him to be utterly unfazed by the mildly frantic tone in my voice.

"I slept," I began without overture, "last night. I was watching Bella sleep and I just…drifted off alongside her. I had a dream, too…"

"Can you remember any details?"

I bit down on my lip. I could remember the details, alright. I doubted I'd ever forget them. "I was a girl. Young, maybe 7 or 8. I was in the woods, yelling for my parents. They didn't come. All I heard was laughter and someone whispering my name." I gave him only the basic facts, not wanting to recall the sheer terror that had struck me as I stood in that clearing.

"Remarkable…" he murmured absently, "What else?"

I recounted the painful hunger I'd felt when I awoke, and he seemed to agree with Bella's assessment that my thirst was heightened due to the fact that I had just woken up. I told him how I seemed to occasionally harbor a higher-than-normal temperature, my strange loss of sight during the storm, and the way I had blushed when I saw Bella.

I could hear him sifting through papers on the other end. "I'll add it to your list of symptoms. I haven't found much, Alice. A few accounts of vampires claiming minor physical incapacitations, one who went blind, a few who seemed to get sick, but…well, the records aren't very thorough. I wish there were more out there who would be willing to keep detailed records and study our kind, but there simply isn't enough for me to go by," he explained gently, causing me to sigh in frustration.

"Also, I want you to know that I've been researching the concept of singers," this got my attention immediately, "…though, again, there isn't a lot of information. There are the ancient legends, of course, but…well, the majority of vampires who come across a human smelling that tempting…erm, as you can imagine, many of them do not leave such humans alive for very long." I shuddered at his words. "There are some accounts of vampires who chose to remain near their singers, but again, the records are strange…the vampires in question either changed their singers eventually, or…simply disappear from records."

"What?" I asked, not understanding.

I could hear Carlisle shaking his head, "I don't know. I was actually debating whether or not I should contact the Volturi. I know they have a far more expansive library of records, but as you can imagine, I'm a bit torn. I don't want to draw any attention to the family while Bella's human."

"No, no," I whispered quickly, "Don't involve the Volturi. Thank you for everything, Carlisle, I really appreciate it."

"One more thing," he said quickly, "I found a bit of information on Alexander."

The vampire from my memory. "Go on," I urged.

"He was quite old, turned at some point during the 1300's. He was well known as a human, so I found a proclamation of his death. He appears throughout the records under various last names. In the 1800's he became a sort of psychologist. He was so fascinated with the human mind that he trained himself to withstand the allure of their blood so that he could study their minds. He worked in many asylums across the south to study mental illness. The records don't go into detail, but there is no recent information. If what James said is true, then he was killed after turning you. None of this seems to be particularly helpful as far as your past is concerned."

"If only he was still alive…" I said wistfully. "It can't be helped. Thank you so much Carlisle, I should return to Bella and Renée."

"Take care of yourself, Alice," he said as he hung up.

I sighed heavily, making my way to where Bella and Renée sat sipping smoothies outside of a small café. "Sorry about that, I absolutely _had_ to check out this art shop I saw," I covered quickly.

Bella saw me and her eyes widened, the smoothie in her hand slipping from her grasp and splashing the table.

"Whoa, Bella!" exclaimed Renée, throwing her hands up as some of the smoothie hit her, "Can you try to be a little more careful?"

I was barely paying attention to her. My eyes were trained on Bella, who continued to stare at me as if I was a 50-foot lizard on a rampage through the city. She didn't even seem to notice her spilled drink as she uttered a single word under her breath, soft enough so that no one but me would hear it.

"Sun."

My head shot up and I stared at the smoldering, golden orb in the sky. Oh god. I was out in the sun, in the middle of a crowded street café, surrounded by people…

Why was there no screaming? Why weren't people pointing at me and staring in shock?

I glanced down at my arm and saw that my skin refracted only a faint, flickering glow that reminded me eerily of a flame dying out. The light was so weak that no human would have been able to see it.

_Oh god. _

* * *

Bella and I tried to play off the rest of the shopping trip as if nothing had happened. I felt her casting me glances that were usually some strange combination of worry and curiosity, and once, when Renée was in the dressing room of one of the shops we stopped at, Bella pulled me to the back and asked if I was alright.

"Bella, I'm fine," I insisted, "I don't know what's up with the sun, but it's not that big of a deal. It's actually rather convenient for the time being."

"You don't sound so convinced," she said, reaching up and resting a hand on my cheek, "You've looked like you're about to be sick nearly every time I look at you."

I took a step towards her, placing my hand over hers, noting grimly that she still didn't feel as warm as usual. "Silly human," I muttered humorlessly, glancing down at the floor, "vampires don't get sick."

Her free hand came under my chin, and I allowed her to raise it so that I was looking at her. I noticed a few other shoppers staring at us curiously, but I ignored them. Nothing existed outside of Bella's eyes, which were currently smoldering with concern. "There's something you aren't telling me," she said softly, her eyes searching mine. Sometimes, I couldn't believe just how easily the girl could read me.

"I…" I trailed off, then closed my eyes and leaned my forehead against hers and took a deep breath. "I'm scared I won't be able to protect you," I finally admitted.

I opened my eyes to find her staring at me in confusion. "What?"

I reached out and held her face just a few inches from mine, afraid to tell her what was on my mind. But this is Bella, and I would always be honest with her, no matter what. "I'm…I'm losing it, Bella. My visions are getting stranger, I'm getting headaches, my body's doing things I can even begin to understand…my senses are less reliable now, I'm just…I'm afraid. I want to protect you, Bella. I want to be able to defend against anything that tries to hurt you. I just want to be strong enough to – hmmpff!"

The last part of my admission was cut off as her lips crashed against mine hungrily. Amazingly, she completely threw me off, and I reached out to grab onto her hips to steady myself. Her hands moved to tangle in my hair as the kiss deepened, my senses reeling at the incredible taste of her lips. I quickly matched her intensity, losing myself in the fierce movement of our lips, completely oblivious to the fact that half the store was probably watching.

I allowed her to back me up against a wall between two clothes racks, a small gasp escaping my throat as I felt her body press up against mine. "Bella…" I whispered into the kiss, moving my hands to wrap around her waist.

"Alice…" she whimpered back right as I felt teeth scrape against my bottom lip, causing me to moan softly at the sensation.

"I'd ask if either of you found anything you like, but I think I know the answer."

I didn't register the words at first, only the fact that Bella's lips suddenly weren't on mine anymore. My eyes shot open and I looked up at Renée, who was looking at both of us with an expression that looked like she was trying very hard not to laugh. A slash of red appeared on Bella's cheeks, and I felt my face heat up as well for a few fleeting seconds.

"I did," I replied, trying to keep my cool, "but I'm not sure how much it costs, and I don't want to ask because I have a feeling I'll get slapped."

Sure enough, Bella ripped her gaze from her mother, turned an even deeper shade of crimson and smacked me playfully on the arm. I flinched and rubbed the spot where she'd hit, pretending like it hurt.

Renée just laughed and rolled her eyes, turning to the cashier, who was staring at Bella and I as if we were potential shoplifters. Ignoring her, I turned back to Bella, whose face still hadn't quite returned to its normal color. "You alright?"

She nodded at me and reached out, taking my hand in hers. "You're the sweetest vampire a girl could ever hope to have…" she remarked with a smile.

I couldn't help but wink at her, my fears momentarily forgotten. "I try."

* * *

"I've been meaning to ask," said Bella as she gathered her dirty clothes together on the edge of the bed, "What's with that ringtone?"

I rolled my eyes and continued my current task of folding my new clothes, which, I now realized, were going to be extremely difficult to fit into my suitcase. But I knew I could do it; decades of practice and constant moves made me one of the best suitcase packers ever.

"Ask Emmet," I replied with a snort, "That's his type of music."

"Hmm…" she paused, thinking about that, "and what's yours?"

I grabbed hold of a pink blouse I had bought and tilted my head to the side. "Me? I like all kinds of stuff. I like a lot of pop, some techno, even a bit of country. Pretty much everything but rap and heavy metal," I answered. "Although my favorite genre is, and will always be, classical."

Bella chuckled at that, and I lowered the skirt I had been folding and narrowed my eyes at her. "What?"

She shook her head and sat down on the bed next to me, resting her head on my shoulder. "Nothing, it's just…I don't know, it makes sense for a vampire who's been alive for a century, I guess."

I scoffed and swatted her with the skirt in my hands, "Silly human. Most of the classical I listen to came centuries before I was even born. So there."

I felt her smile against my shoulder. "I bet you have a lot of memories…" she muttered.

I glanced down at her and gave up on the skirt, moving to play with her hair instead, "Countless vampire ones…yet only one human one," I sighed wistfully.

She turned and looked at me, her brows knitted together in confusion, "One human memory?" she questioned. "I thought you couldn't remember anything."

"Carlisle helped me retrieve…one memory. It isn't much, and it isn't pleasant, but it's something."

Bella reached out and took my hand, stroking it gently with her thumb. The tenderness and affection in that one, simple gesture nearly made me melt right there. "Tell me about it," she requested.

I told her. I recounted the memory in excruciating detail: the darkness, the screaming, the hatred in the first man's voice, the kindness in Alexander's, the crushing loneliness when he left me there. I didn't realize until I finished the last sentence that I had started to cry softly. Bella shifted so that she was sitting on my lap, her arms wrapping around my shoulders protectively as she kissed the tears on my cheek.

"It's ok," she whispered soothingly, "I'm here."

Yet even as she spoke, her voice faded into nothing as a vision overtook me.

* * *

_Jasper sat in his room, perched on the windowsill. The window was wide open, and he started out into the trees and sighed heavily. The room looked much barer than it had before I had last seen it, probably in preparation for his upcoming departure. _

_Suddenly, the door opened with a bang, and Jasper jumped off the sill and turned to see Edward's anxious face, a pack slung over his shoulder. "Change of plans. We're leaving. Now." _

"_What?" exclaimed Jasper, clearly shocked by his brother's words, "Edward, Victoria's still –" _

"_They can handle her!" he yelled, "We have to leave, now!" He shoved the pack at Jasper. "I got some of your stuff together. We can come back for the rest later, maybe. You've got to listen to me, Jasper. We have to go right now, before any of the others come back." _

_Jasper's face shifted instantly from confusion to anger, "Edward, I'm not going to just run away –"_

"_Do you love Alice?" he cut in swiftly, effectively halting Jasper's attempt at speech. _

"_I…"_

"_Do you?" he asked, impatience clear on his face._

"_Of course I love Alice, but what has that got to do with –"_

"_Then shut up and trust me. What we're doing is protecting her. Her, Bella, and the rest of the family. I wouldn't trust anyone but you with this, Jasper. I need your help in this. Please," his tone turned begging towards the end as he met the wide, golden eyes of his brother. A moment passed, neither breaking eye contact before Jasper nodded slowly. _

"_Alright. I'll come with you, but why can't you tell –"_

"_Alice is watching us," he cut him off yet again, "I'm almost sure of it. And I don't want her knowing where we're going because she'd try and follow us. I can't explain where we're going until Seth joins us." _

"_Seth?" asked Jasper in confusion. _

"_He's one of the wolves. When he's with us, Alice won't be able to see where we're going."_

"_We're going with one of those –"_

"_Not the time, Jasper!" shouted Edward, clutching at his hair. "We've got to go. This instant. I'm serious." _

_Jasper sighed heavily and swung the pack over his shoulder. "Fine. Lead the way." _

* * *

"Alice?" whispered Bella, her voice calling me back to reality. I blinked several times and shook my head roughly to clear it, unable to come to grips with what I had just seen.

"What did you see?" she asked, and I turned my frantic gaze to her before I grabbed my cell phone from my pocket and started dialing frantically, knowing I was going to be too late.

"They're gone," I choked out, tears still falling from my eyes as my thumb hit the send button, "Edward and Jasper. They're leaving."

**A/N: Oh noez! D: The drama. It kills. Apologies for how split up this chapter is.  
**

**So, like I was saying, there'll be a bit of a delay on the next chapter. Hopefully over vacation I'll already have it mentally written in my head. I tend to do that when I'm on vacation, heh. **

**A lot of you are wondering what's up with Alice. All in good time, my friends, all in good time. I'd love to hear your theories. =P **

**Hope you enjoyed, and please read and review! **


	12. Chapter 12: Even I Need Protection

**A/N: Vermont was pretty cool :) Beautiful place for a bit of relaxation. It was too damn hot, though. Cooler than it was back home, but still. I will, at some point in August, disappear for another week long trip, but I'll warn you all when I get closer and actually find out when I'm leaving. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, but neither do you. SO HA! Unless, of course, you happen to be Stephanie Meyer, in which case…what the hell are you doing on a fanfiction site? Seriously, Steph. Jeez. **

Chapter 12: Even I Need Protection

"There must have been a reason…there must've. They wouldn't have done this. They wouldn't just run away. There must be a reason. There must be," muttered Bella to herself as we sat in the plastic seats near our gate at the airport. She'd been repeating this to herself quietly for most of the ride to the airport, a perfect echo to the thoughts inside of my head.

_But why wouldn't they tell me? What on Earth is so dangerous that it has to be kept from me and the rest of the family? _

I hadn't been able to get a hold of any members of my family in time. Neither Jasper nor Edward picked up their phones, and by the time I was finally able to reach someone else – Rosalie, returning from a hunting trip – it had been far too late to catch up to them. Their plan had worked marvelously; they took off south through the forest, then turned west right before their futures had disappeared completely. I had no idea what they were planning, but I knew where I might get my answers.

I'd have to talk to Jacob about his newest pack member. My one encounter with the boy hadn't gone terribly well, but I thought that maybe, without the stress that had been imposed upon us during the last brief meeting, we would be able to be civil with each other. As much as I disliked the idea, I had to talk to Jacob.

I heaved an enormous sigh and turned my head to look at Bella. She had abandoned her constant muttering and was now slumped in her seat, head resting against the metal top of the seat back in a way that I was sure could not be comfortable. As soon as that thought entered my head, my arms opened themselves and Bella turned to lean against me instead of the seat. I held her tightly and kissed the top of her head, content to let the silence surround us for the moment.

"You promised me a talk," she finally whispered, surprising me.

I let my eyes close slowly and gently let the air out of my lungs. "I did," I agreed softly. Despite the invitation for conversation, several more moments of silence passed. Bella seemed to take my silence for reluctance, which, for the most part, it was.

"You don't want me to change," she whispered.

I shook my head. "That's not it, exactly. I guess I just don't understand why you want to. I could see why when you were with Edward, since becoming one of us would be the only real way you could be with him. But you're not with him now and…I don't know. I originally thought that, since you were still interested in the idea, that maybe you were seeking the change for the wrong reasons."

Bella stared at me, clearly confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well…" I hesitated, "I sort of thought you wanted to become a vampire for…the immortality, or the heightened senses," I admitted, lowering my gaze to the ground.

I felt her hand slide under my chin, lifting my head up so that I could look into her eyes, which were currently wide with disbelief. "_That's _what you thought?"

"Erm…no?" I covered lamely.

"Alice…" she murmured my name softly as her forehead met mine, "I don't _care_ about living forever. Not if I have no one to share it with," she bit down on her lip, "I want to be one of you because…because I want to be with you, Alice. That's the only reason. And I can't, not like this. I'll grow old eventually, I'll fall and crack my head open" –I winced at that – "or…something. If I have to become a vampire to be with you, I'll become a vampire to be with you. As long as…" her voice trailed off and she closed her eyes, leaning away from me slightly. I heard her heart pick up, thrumming heavily against her chest.

"As long as…?" I questioned softly.

Her eyes opened and, to my surprise, she lowered her head so that her face was hidden in the crook of my neck. "As long as you'll have me," she finished, heating my skin slightly as her face flushed.

I turned to look down at her, meeting her soft brown eyes with my hard gold ones. "Of course I'll have you, you silly human." I didn't bother lowering my voice, so the middle-aged woman sitting in the row of seats behind us turned around to stare at me in confusion. I smirked inwardly.

Her smile widened, "Then, you'll change me?"

"Not so fast," I answered, earning a soft groan from the girl next to me. Speaking quietly this time, I continued, "It's not all fairy tales and unicorns, Bella. Getting your instincts under control is incredibly difficult. If you do change, the first year or so, as a newborn, you _will_ slip-up. I promise you that. We'll do everything we can to help you, of course, but we won't be able to control you very easily. Newborns are very powerful. Not even Emmet will be able to match you in strength, nor will Edward in speed. You won't have much of a conscience; there won't be much going on inside of your head besides thirst."

She looked at me thoughtfully before tilting her head slightly in curiosity. "What was it like for you?"

_Torture._

My body stiffened slightly and I closed my eyes to the onslaught of memories. Fire. Thirst. Screaming. Death. Blood. Horror. So much of it I had tried to block out, with no success. It wasn't _me._ The vampiric newborn from my memory, the one with flaming red eyes and an overwhelming urge to kill, wasn't me at all...and yet she was.

"I…" I turned away, unable to look Bella in the eye.

"Alice?" she asked, and I felt her warm hand on my cheek, coaxing me to turn back towards her. "It's alright, if you don't want to talk about it –"

I didn't want to talk about it. I never wanted to talk about it again. But I'd have to live with the vivid memories for the rest of my unnaturally long not-life, anyway. The words tumbled out of my mouth without my permission.

"I was the only member of the family besides Carlisle to completely overturn my instincts on my own," I said quickly, knowing that I'd have to get this out now or else I may never be able to say it again. "But it was so _hard,_ Bella. I didn't know what I was doing or who I was or what had happened to me. All I knew was my name. Alice."

I paused to take a completely unnecessary breath, still unable to look at Bella. "I…killed a few dozen people before I received even the slightest idea that what I was doing was wrong. I was walking down a deserted street in the rain one night and there was a man. And I thought immediately to kill him, but I had already hunted myself full that night and so…for the first time, I made the conscience decision _not_ to kill.

"I didn't expect what happened next. I was suddenly taken by a vision, far more elaborate than the usual brief flashes I received…I saw the man's future. I saw him return home, thoroughly soaked, to his small house. I saw him open the door and smile as he greeted his two small children, who ran to the door, calling for him excitedly. I saw his wife step out from the kitchen, saw him wrap his arms around her and twirl her through the air and kiss her before setting her down and smiling as he stared into her eyes. I saw that, the next day, he returned to his simple factory job, where one of the coal boilers exploded. He saved two fellow workers by dragging them out through the smoke. I saw that the incident had inspired him to develop new safety procedures at the factory he worked at, procedures which would save hundreds of other lives as the years passed. I saw him spend his whole life at that factory before he retired and moved out to the country with his wife, where they both grew old together. I saw everything…everything that would happen, the moment I made the decision not to kill him."

I looked back at Bella now, my eyes filling with tears. She was looking at me in shock, and I felt her hand move to cover mine. She said nothing, simply waited for me to continue.

"I hated myself for the lives I had ended, for what I had done. From then on, I made a point of deciding not to attack my potential human victims…as long as I could truly make the decision before I did them harm, I would see their lives flash before my eyes, and I would be unable to kill them. I took me a year, but finally, I could stand to be around them without the overpowering urge to feed, as long as I had hunted animals recently beforehand. It took time, but I was willing to try my hardest to make it work. Eventually I gained more control over my instincts, met Jasper, then the family, and of course, you know the rest."

"Wow…" she breathed, looking at me in awe, "That's incredible." Her hand moved to wipe away the few stray tears that threatened to fall down my cheek. "You're so brave, Alice."

The girl who normally spends her days hanging out with vampires was calling _me_ brave? "That means a lot to me, Bella. I just really don't want to put you through that. My first memories are of being burned alive. Most of us block that part out – the blinding pain of the change – but I didn't. I remember the horror, the feeling like it was never going to end, the feeling that I _was_ fire. It took me years to gather enough memories so that I wouldn't have to think of it constantly. I…I couldn't burn you, Bella. I just couldn't."

Her expression changed then, hardening with determination as the hand on my cheek moved to run through my hair. Without a word, she gently pulled on me, and I allowed myself to be tugged closer to her, curling up against her body as her arms circled me protectively. It felt strange, almost, to be the one in her arms. My instincts had barely given me a break lately, constantly calling me to defend her, to hold and support her. This felt oddly…backwards.

Yet, even as I thought this, my insides seemed to relax, infinitely soothed at the feel of a warm body covering me as if intending to shield me from the rest of the world. I closed my eyes and hid my face in the fabric of her shirt, a soft hum escaping my throat. I stopped feeling strange right at that moment. It felt completely natural to be in the warm embrace of Bella Swan. I had already known that I would face an army to protect the girl I loved, but now, in this moment, I realized that Bella would just as easily do the same for me.

Her lips found my ear then, her warm breath tickling the side of my face as she spoke softly, causing me to shiver with delight. "Sometimes, you have to go through hell to get to heaven."

I didn't speak. There were no more words needed. Words just got in the way. And so I waited for the boarding to start, hiding in my comfortable human-shelter and feeling, for the first time in my life, as if nothing in the world could harm me.

* * *

I stood before the edge of the La Push border, sitting cross-legged on the ground and trying to look as non-threatening as possible. Half of me still couldn't believe I was actually doing this, but the other half of me was driven to find answers and was willing to look anywhere to get them. I wasn't entirely sure he would come, since I couldn't scan his future of course, but I had done everything I could to get him to this spot.

_"Cullen?" asked Billy Black in confusion when he answered the phone and picked up on my rather distinct voice as I spoke my greeting. His tone seemed guarded and untrusting, but more surprised than anything else. _

_ "Yes, Alice Cullen," I clarified. "I know this is a bit…strange. I got your number from watching Bella dial the house and I…well, I very much need to talk to your son." _

_ Something about my tone seemed to have lowered his defenses slightly, but he still spoke carefully, as if considering every word. "He isn't in right now. I'll, uhh…tell him you called –" _

_ "Wait," I cut in, knowing the dog would never have anything to do with me unless I gave him reason to, "Tell him it's about his newest pack mate." I knew I was going out on a limb here, but I figured my plan would work as soon as I caught Billy's reaction. _

_ "Seth!" he exclaimed, his rough voice shooting up an octave, "You know about him! Where's he gone? What have you done to –"_

_ "I haven't done anything to him, Billy, I assure you. I very much need to speak to a pack member about him, and seeing how Jacob's the only one I met, naturally I thought of him. Please, with Jacob's help, we might be able to bring him home safely. I just need a bit of information." _

_ The other end was gravely quiet. I could hear the man's heartbeat pounding rapidly, nervousness settling in. "I can assure you," I added as an afterthought, "I mean your son, nor your pack, any harm. But I recognize that we both have a common goal and I need to speak to Jacob as soon as possible." I was careful not to tell him that the youngest member of his tribe's wolves was now traveling with two vampires, considering that it seemed like he didn't know and the knowledge would most likely only serve in making him more hostile. _

_ "Alright," he finally said with a heavy sigh, "I will make sure my son receives this message…"_

_ "Tell him to meet me at the border at 10 tonight, if you please." _

_ "Y-yes. Understood." There was a definitive 'click' as the man on the other end quickly hung up the phone, dropping it onto the receiver as if it had suddenly morphed into a snake._

I didn't need a watch to tell me what time it was now. 10:06 on the dot. I sighed, scanning my future again. I saw myself sitting in this same spot for hours, sitting…and sitting…and sitting…

Suddenly, the vision went dark, as if someone had cut the power supply of my mind. I blinked and returned to the present, trying to focus on the relief that he was actually coming instead of the incredibly unnerving fact that my whole future had just _disappeared._

Surprisingly, it was his sound that reached me before his scent. I heard him approaching from a half mile off, the pounding of his footfalls telling me that he was in human form. His smell didn't hit me until several seconds later…and it startled me.

I recalled the memory of the only other time I had been face-to-face with Jacob Black, watching him standing in Bella's doorway, quivering with anger and releasing one of the most unpleasant odors I had ever smelled in my life.

This was not the scent that caught my attention now.

Oh, it was Jacob alright; the similarities were enough so that I could tell that the source was still the same. But, although before my instincts had recoiled, fighting an urge to get away from the putrid scent, this time my nose merely flicked in mild irritation. Jacob smelled…not _good, _exactly, but…far more natural than before. He smelled of trees and earth and the air during a rainstorm. The stench of wet dog still clung to him, but it was masked, at least in part, by the far less unpleasant scents surrounding him. I took another deep sniff, wondering what on Earth was causing this change.

He appeared then; tall, tan, and shirtless, with dark circles under his eyes and a guarded, yet curious expression on his face. He reached the area about 15 feet from where I was sitting and stopped, tensing slightly.

"Cullen," he stated simply for greeting, "You smell weird." I saw his nose wrinkle at this admission before he mimicked my earlier actions, pulling in a deep whiff of air.

"I was going to say the same thing, actually," I responded, not moving from my position on the ground. "I wouldn't say you smell like perfume, exactly, but…something's changed."

His curious expression fell into one of annoyance, as if he was mad at himself for agreeing with me about something. "Whatever. That's not important right now. Where the hell is Seth?" he demanded.

He was asking _me?_ That was odd… "Isn't he your pack mate?" I asked in confusion, "You should know…"

He growled softly and crossed his arms, clearly unhappy with the fact that I was pointing out something that he'd obviously failed at. "He is? Gee, thanks for telling me, I hadn't noticed," he spoke with heavy sarcasm before softening slightly and stating with a hint of concern, "He hasn't phased since he left. We have no clue where he is," he admitted.

"Damn it…" I cursed in frustration. "Do you have any idea where he might have gone? Any at all?"

Jacob uncrossed his arms and looked at me furiously, shaking slightly. I realized my mistake immediately. "Why the hell do _you_ want to know? Want to keep our pack from growing by killing _pups?_ That's low, even for you, _Cullen!"_ he spat the name as if it had a bad taste.

I held up my hands defensively, "Jacob, I –"

It was pointless; he continued as if I hadn't spoken. "I can't fucking _believe_ you guys! Stay the fuck away from Seth or I'll make you wish you'd never been _reborn!" _he boomed, his hands clenching into fists.

"Listen!" I pleaded when he paused for breath, "I don't want to hurt him! I just want to find him because…because he's with two of my siblings somewhere, and I don't know where they are, either!"

Jacob's expression softened, then he realized what I'd just said and grit his teeth together. "He did what…"

"Edward and Jasper won't hurt him, I assure you. They only brought him so that my visions would be blocked. I've got to find them…all of them. Please understand…"

I waited several minutes, watching him closely. The shaking slowed, then stopped. His fists unclenched and exhaustion came back to his features, and I watched in surprise as he seemed to slump forward, hitting the ground with a loud 'crash' that would definitely leave a dent in the pavement. Instinctively, I reached out my hand to him, but a short growl cut the movement off and I quickly returned to my former position. Several minutes passed.

"I haven't slept in a week," Jacob finally mumbled, "I was chasing down that red haired leech, running watch duty in the forests, and then Seth disappears and I…I'm so tired."

I was surprised he was letting his guard down in front of me, but I had a feeling that his instincts were still working overtime, even if it didn't show. "I'm sorry," I whispered, surprising myself with the sincerity in my tone.

He just snorted humorlessly, "No, you're not."

"I am."

"Whatever," he grumbled. "Just…tell me everything. _Everything_ you know that might help me find him." I looked at him then, his massive body moving up and down slowly to the rhythm of his deep breaths. He truly _was_ like a dog, I thought randomly; fiercely loyal and incredibly protective of his pack. Part of my mind did not forget that it was Jacob who had saved the life of the girl I love.

"Jasper and Edward were planning on leaving the family temporarily as soon as Victoria was taken care of," I began. "Think of it as…an extended vacation. We do that sometimes, go off for a while just to take breaks," I gave him only the briefest of explanations, knowing that: a) he didn't care about vampire family dynamics at all, and b) he really, really didn't need to know that the reason they were leaving was largely because I was in love with Bella.

"I took Bella to Jacksonville, as you know, just as a precaution. After Victoria's attempted attack…I had a vision."

"You all can't do that, right?" he cut in, staring at me from the ground as if I had three heads. I had to suppress a chuckle.

"No, just me. I see the future," I explained, "Though it's…kind of spotty. Especially lately. And I can't see werewo –" I cut myself off, pausing for a moment. "Why the hell am I telling you this?"

He snorted again, "No clue," his tone was mildly annoyed and dripping with impatience, "Just get on to the part about Seth."

"Right," I sighed. "While in Jacksonville, I had a vision of Edward going to Jasper and convincing him to leave earlier than they had planned. He wouldn't tell him where they were going just then because he figured I'd see them leave. He mentioned that he'd explain everything when Seth joined up with them. They then ran south west – towards La Push, I imagine – and that's where my visions cut off. Edward must have figured out that I can't see the wolves by reading Carlisle's mind, though how he convinced Seth to join them, I can't really imagine."

Jacob closed his eyes tightly and growled, "I can. Ever since he joined the pack, he's wanted to prove himself. He's the pip-squeak of the pack. He was getting fed up of the fact that we never let him do anything. He was also the only one of us to show any interest in you bloodsuckers, once he found out about the treaty. The kid doesn't seem to have much in the way of instinct." Jacob paused, his tone now turning remorseful. "It was my fault. I shouldn't have treated the kid the way I did. Maybe then he wouldn't have run off…"

"Blaming yourself isn't going to bring him back," I said gently.

"I don't even know why the hell I'm talking to you," he said as a reply. I couldn't say anything against it, though, because I had been wondering the same thing. Without the horrible smell warding me off, he wasn't actually all that hard to talk to.

"What do I smell like to you?" I asked randomly, surprising even myself.

He opened his eyes and looked at me with exasperation. "What the hell?"

I shrugged my shoulders and lifted my legs, hugging them close to my chest. "You said I smell different. You do, too. You smell more like the forest and less like wet dog," I explained. "What do I smell like to you?"

He continued staring at me blankly from his spot on the ground before he muttered, "Like someone dug up a corpse and drenched it with perfume, actually."

I nodded, not bothering to take offence to his words since I was sure they were probably pretty accurate. I didn't expect his next words at all.

"You're not like them," he said, clearly fighting to keep the tiredness out of his voice. "You have their freaky eyes and weird looks, you're pale as hell, you sit like a freaking statue, but you're not like them. Not really."

I blinked and met his eyes. "What do you mean?"

He scrunched up his face, as if he was trying to find the right words, which was probably incredibly difficult given his degree of exhaustion. "You're…I don't know. They all seem like statues that can move. Or re-animated corpses or something. They don't look…don't feel…like life. Like…alive." His words were starting to slur and his eyelids were dropping fast. "You're the first leech I've met that…" he paused to yawn enormously, "…that seemed like you were once…somebody."

I smirked. "Did you think that when you first saw me?"

He shook his head slightly. "Nope. Couldn't get…past the smell."

I closed my eyes and again recalled the memory of the only other time we'd met. "I thought you were a monster," I whispered, though I knew he could hear me. "I fought against that instinct because I knew you'd saved Bella's life, and I wanted to give you a chance. But I couldn't, not really. Not with you smelling like that. I guess now I see what you really are," I eased my eyes back open and tilted my head, studying the enormous figure on the ground several feet in front of me. "You're a dog. Loyal, protective, dependent on your pack."

He laughed quietly at that one. "I'm not a poodle, Cullen. Don't forget that."

"I know, and I won't."

We fell into silence for a few minutes after that. I kept expecting him to get up and leave; to return to his house for some sleep. I couldn't imagine that he was enjoying the feeling of lying stomach-down on an asphalt pavement with a vampire not fifteen feet away from him. It was then that I realized that my own instincts had relaxed considerably, hardly bothered by the werewolf in my presence. By all accounts, I should want to get away from him as well. Yet he looked so…helpless, lying there on the ground, limbs heavy with exhaustion as he continued to deny himself sleep. He wasn't helpless in the slightest, of course, but the illusion still held in place.

_The dog is tired, and hardly smells like dog. Of course I'm not wound up._

"I've got to find him…" he said under his breath, concern momentarily overpowering exhaustion. I had to admire his dedication, if nothing else.

"What you need is sleep," I answered.

He growled half-heartedly, "Don't tell me what I need. I've gone this long, I can go longer. Seth needs me. Leah's…freaking out. Sam's really…worried and…Sue…after Harry…died…" his words became impossible to distinguish after that and, to my amazement, his jaw fell slack on the road and he fell asleep on the pavement.

I'm not sure how long I sat there staring at him before I stood up and turned in the direction of the house, but when I finally did, something stopped me short and caused me to turn back around.

I couldn't just leave him there, could I? I knew full well he was capable of defending himself against any enemy conceivable, but he sure didn't look like it at that moment. I couldn't bring him back to his pack for several reasons, the main one being the fact that I wasn't allowed on pack territory. And his pack would be back soon, right? They'd probably be patrolling this area eventually, find him, and bring him home. There was nothing to worry about.

Still. This was Bella's savior. It was because of this boy that she was alive. This boy had jumped into the water and saved the girl I loved from drowning.

I wasn't even aware of myself as I dropped right back to the ground in my previous position, looking relaxed, but alerting my senses to all of my immediate surroundings. I sat there for several hours, unmoving, keeping silent guard over the sleeping wolf boy. I knew that he would probably not be happy with me had he been aware of what I was doing, especially if he knew of my relationship with Bella. But I would not leave him here. I owed him this, at the very least; the small amount of protection I could offer.

It wasn't until the sun started lightening by miniscule amounts that I heard the footfalls of wolves approaching through the trees. Their smells, although more potent than Jacob's due to the form they were currently in, were very similar to his: musty, of the forest, and largely less unpleasant than they should have been.

When they were a half mile away I turned and silently left my post, heading back towards Forks.

_I will forever be indebted to you, Jacob Black._

**A/N: Personally, I like this chapter.**

**What do you all think of the Alice and Jake interaction? I didn't want to play into the whole "mortal enemy" thing yet, but I don't want them to go skipping through a meadow like best friends, either. And I always thought that Jake was a bit of an ass at times in the book, and I wanted to make him a little less…ass-ish. **

**As always, give me your feedback, thoughts, theories, and whatever else by clicking the shiny little button directly under this author's note. This would make Alice and I very happy. **


	13. Chapter 13: It's Rude to Interrupt

**A/N: HOT DAMN I'm embarrassed...I posted this last night while my mother was screaming at me to go to bed, guess I didn't bother to double check that it was the RIGHT EFFIN' CHAPTER. Sorry guys...here's the REAL chapter...X_X...  
**

**Looks like I'm leaving earlier than anticipated. I'll be heading to Michigan (HOORAY for 2-day car rides! /sarcasm) on July 30, and I'll be back in a little over a week. Just a heads up. **

**Disclaimer: Someone _pleas_e give me a heads-up when hell freezes over, because that's when Stephanie Meyer said I could own Twilight.  
**

Chapter 13: It's Rude to Interrupt

It wasn't until after I left Jacob that the full weight of the disappointment hit me.

I moved through the trees quickly and effortlessly, heading in the direction of town, unsure as to whether I would end up returning to my house or to Bella's. It hardly seemed to matter as I ran on auto-pilot with nothing but my thoughts for company.

Seth hadn't phased since he left. There went my information source. I probably should have planned for that, but, being the optimist that I am, it hadn't even occurred to me that he wouldn't be traveling in his wolf form. I suppose I should look on the bright side of that fact: if he had maintained his human form this whole time, then he wasn't in immediate danger, which meant that Edward and Jasper weren't in immediate danger.

…Right?

It hardly seemed likely, but I was tired of being pessimistic; it just wasn't in my nature. So I chose to take this information as a good omen, even if it meant that the pack would have no idea where he is. Of course, I wouldn't put it past the wolves to lie to me, but I hadn't missed the look in Jacob's eyes whenever I said Seth's name. No, he hadn't lied to me. His concern was far too genuine for that. He wanted his pack brother back just as badly as I wanted Edward and Jasper back.

I stopped short, sighing heavily as I reached into my pocket to pull out my cell phone. I dialed Emmett's number, and he picked up on the first ring.

"Did the pup talk?" he said by way of greeting. I rolled my eyes at that one.

"Nothing to say," I confirmed. "Seth hasn't phased since leaving, and no one knows where he could have gone. Jake didn't even know he's traveling with Edward and Jasper. The only thing I was able to figure out was that Seth left because he felt under-appreciated."

"Uh-huh," said Emmett absently, clearly not focused on me at all. I could hear the T.V. playing in the background. I was about to snap at him to pay attention before my keen ears picked up the voice of a newscaster.

_"Seattle continues to be plagued by a series of violent murders,"_ said the voice. _"Gruesome discoveries last night brought the total victim count up to 22. Police have no leads, but think the killings might be connected to an equally baffling string of disappearances…"_

"Since when do you watch the early morning news?" I asked him.

"Since there's nothing else on T.V. at this hour because all of the lazy humans are in bed," he countered. "Besides, this is really interesting. There's some freaky serial killer loose in Seattle." He sounded excited at this prospect, as if he were a five-year-old watching a Disneyworld commercial instead of a 95-year-old watching an emergency broadcast about a mass murder.

Typical Emmett.

"Hell-o? Missing siblings?" I reminded him, effectively snapping him out of his space-out. Weird. Maybe the news anchor was hot or something.

"Right, right. Well…If the dogs don't know anything, we're fucked."

I waited, but he said nothing else. "Uh…huh. Is that your professional opinion?"

"Mmm-hmm…"

I sighed, still mulling over the facts in my head. "If what you told me is true, then Edward went to track Victoria's escape route before returning while all of you were on a hunting trip…" I mused out loud.

"Yeah."

"Obviously, he didn't find Victoria, but he must have found something to lead him away. Something he wouldn't want us to find."

"Yeah."

I couldn't take it anymore. "Oh for god's sake, Emmett, what the hell are you looking at?"

"I'm sorry!" he roared defensively, "This case, Ali. It's…really weird."

I sighed and closed my eyes, rubbing the bridge of my nose with two fingers. Emmett was absolutely impossible sometimes. I decided to bite, despite the fact that I had more pressing matters on hand at the moment; I knew he wouldn't listen to me, anyway. "Alright, what is it?"

"Shhh! Listen…" With one last eye roll, I did as instructed.

_"The murder victims have all been killed in a variety of ways. Several were burned almost beyond recognition; a few were found washed-up in the sound. However, the victims share a few eerie similarities, one of the most disturbing being the complete drainage of blood in almost all cases." _

I froze. There was absolutely no way…

"Alice," came Emmett's voice, uncharacteristically soft, "What does this mean?"

I had no answer at the time. The news caster's voice was echoing in my head. _Murder victims…disappearances…burned beyond recognition...complete drainage of blood…_

"Carlisle," I said simply, forcing my father's name out quickly, "Does he know? Is he there?"

"No," came the grim reply, "he's still out. I'll call him now."

I nodded absently to myself, my thoughts already far away. The sound of my human's heartbeat once again took center stage in my mind, everything else fading slightly as it did so. I once again felt drawn to the sound, pulled towards the direction I knew I would follow to find Bella. Seattle was simply too close for comfort, if the killings really were a result of vampiric activity. My instincts were working on overdrive now.

"I'm going to check on Bella," I mumbled absently, clicking the phone off immediately as I lurched forward, closing the distance between myself and the sound of a beating heart that never truly left my mind.

_ Why the killings? Why Seattle? Why now?_

The information would have unnerved me enough without everything else going on. But add in my missing siblings, spotty visions, failing senses, Victoria being somewhere nearby...I liked to say that I could handle anything in the world, but certainly not all at once. This wasn't good. And unfortunately, it was about to get even worse. I caught a scent on the wind then, one that made me stop dead in my tracks.

Months ago, when I had received a vision of the three nomads who would approach the field where my family and I played baseball, I had felt an ice-cold stab of fear in my chest as my territorial instincts kicked in.

This was about a hundred times worse. I recognized the scent immediately: vampire. Strange vampire. Heading in the direction of Bella's house.

I ran faster than I'd thought was possible.

* * *

Even though I could hear her heart, pounding slowly in a rhythm that suggested deep sleep, I did not relax until I was perched outside of her window, looking at her face with my own eyes. I stood there for several minutes, letting the knowledge that she was unharmed fully register with me. Still, the stranger's smell was much more potent here, which would not allow me to calm down fully. I could tell that, whoever it was, they had left many hours ago, almost certainly before Bella had returned. I briefly focused my senses on the next room, breathing a soft sigh of relief when I picked up the sound of Charlie's slow heart rate and deep breathing.

I pulled my phone out quickly and texted Emmet, not wanting to call and risk waking Bella. _"We have company. Someone's got their eye on Bella. I don't recognize the scent. Come over as soon as you can. -Ali." _

I clicked it shut and slowly slipped into Bella's bedroom, sniffing along every surface. I could tell areas where the visitor had touched, of which there weren't many: the desk, the closet, the laundry hamper. It seemed as though they had only been here very briefly, and had done whatever it was they came to do without disrupting the room.

I growled instinctively at the smell that seemed so out of place here, in the sanctuary where my human slept. Damage done or not, I would not ignore this fact. I made a point of memorizing the scent, knowing that if I ever smelled it again, I would recognize it immediately and take care of whoever it was that had made the stupid mistake of entering this place. No one harms my Bella. No one.

"Alice?" came a faint, tired whisper. I turned around to meet a pair of sleepy, blinking eyes.

The sound of her voice further soothed me, and I moved to sit on the end of the bed. She slowly sat up and held out her arms, reaching out for me in the dark. I smiled at that and moved so that I was lying beside her. "I'm sorry, Bella," I whispered, brushing a few strands of hair away from her face, "I didn't mean to wake you."

She turned to face me, wrapping her arms around my waist and hugging me tightly. "It's alright," she replied, "I'm glad you did."

I smiled at that and kissed the top of her head softly, but the look quickly turned into a frown. She was just…so vulnerable. I hated the thought that one of my kind had slipped in here without my noticing.

"What's wrong?" she asked immediately, surprising me. I didn't know she could read me so well. She sat up and reached over to flick on her bedside lamp, casting the room in a warm golden glow as she met my gaze.

"I…" I began, unsure of how to say this. I didn't want to scare her, and the knowledge that a strange vampire had been snooping in your room hours previously was not a concept that usually sat well with most people. I scanned her future briefly, noting that she'd be very unnerved no matter how I went about this. I decided on the direct approach. "Someone's been in here."

her brow furrowed slightly, betraying a hint of confusion. "What?"

"A vampire. One I don't recognize. They were in here, likely right before you returned from the airport," I clarified, feeling her body go stiff next to mine. "They're gone now, whoever they are. They don't seem to have disturbed anything."

I bit down on my lip and waited in silence for her to react to this news. She sighed heavily in exasperation before burrowing her head into my shoulder and mumbling an "Oh my god…"

I wrapped my arms around her tightly, a silent promise that I'd make sure it never happened again. "I'll let the others know as soon as I get back," I answered mechanically, cursing myself again for not seeing this happening. "Don't worry, Bella. You're well-protected."

She raised her head to look at me, her eyes searching my face. She took a deep breath, likely trying to process the latest threat to her existence. I was surprised, then, by her next words.

"Stop blaming yourself," she muttered softly, "You know it wasn't your fault."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. First, it _was _my fault: I'd been so caught up in the rapid deterioration of my previously calm, predictable life that I hadn't picked up on the fact that a strange vampire had visited Bella's room in the night, a detail which was kinda sorta _ridiculously important._ Second: I was completely thrown off by the fact that she seemed to be able to read me like an open book. I was used to being with somebody who could, of course, but I hadn't expected it from Bella. And so, I sat there, utterly speechless.

"Ugh," she stated, rolling her eyes, "You vampires all seem to think you have this sworn duty to be able to do absolutely everything." Her words were light and slightly teasing, not meant to be a real scolding. She held my face in her hands and I simply stared, mesmerized. "Humans aren't the only ones who make mistakes. Stop being so hard on yourself; I'm fine. My room's fine. Char –" she cut off, shooting upright from the bed, eyes wide. Despite her attempt to be nonchalant about the situation, her expression was immediately terrified. "Charlie?"

"He's fine," I confirmed quickly, sitting up and laying a hand on her shoulder, "Sleeping peacefully in the next room."

She let out a brief sigh of relief, and her previous, easy tone returned. "See? Everything's fine. No harm done. Don't beat yourself up about it, really."

I stared at her for several seconds, unable to believe the easiness with which she was accepting all of this. "And…if he _hadn't_ been fine?" I asked softly, hating to think of the words but unable to stop them before they left my mouth.

Bella winced, clearly not wanting to even think about that. "It…it still wouldn't be your fault, Alice," she whispered, her voice wavering with worry but still ringing with sincerity. I immediately scolded myself for making her uncomfortable.

She smacked me lightly and declared, "No, none of that. I just said, stop blaming yourself so much."

I blinked at her in response. "How the hell do you do that?" I finally whispered.

She tilted her head to the side in a manner that was both questioning and unbelievably adorable. "How do I do what?"

I sighed softly, leaning back down onto the pillows with an almighty 'flop'. "It's like…you read me like an open book sometimes," I confessed, looking into her eyes as I said this. She moved to hover over me, her expression softening. "I don't know how you do it," I whispered, my hand moving to cup her cheek.

Her hand covered mine, squeezing it gently. She smiled in a way that made her eyes seem to sparkle, letting loose butterflies in my stomach. She was so beautiful.

"You aren't very hard to read," she answered, her thumb stroking my hand gently, "Your eyes…they're pretty revealing. And I've been paying a lot more attention to you lately," she added, her cheeks reddening at the admission. I grinned widely at her words, knowing that, had my heart been capable of beating, it would be pounding frantically at that moment.

I leaned up and kissed her without another thought, smiling into her lips as she reached behind me and leaned back, pulling me closer to her. I was transfixed by the warmth of her, reveling in the incredible feeling of her body heat as she pressed closer to me. I slowly ran my hands down her sides, causing her to shiver slightly as the chill of my skin soaked through the fabric of her tank top. I boldly ran my tongue across her bottom lip, grinning inwardly as the action made her whimper softly and clutch me tighter.

My perfect moment was rudely interrupted by another vision. I groaned and stood up, not wanting to be caught on the bed.

Bella was looking like a sad puppy as I moved away from her, but I shook my head and motioned out the window, then folded my arms over my chest. "Company," I muttered, my tone mirroring the dejected look on her face.

"Huh?"

A second later, Emmett appeared on the branch outside of the window. He wore a sly grin that faded as he saw me standing a few feet away from the bed with my arms crossed. I couldn't help the smirk that formed on my face.

"Aww, come on!" he grumbled, "You and that stupid gift of yours…" Bella blushed brightly as she saw him, which only made him groan louder. "Aww man, Ali, what did I miss?" he complained.

"We were discussing the weather," I explained with a straight face, ignoring the fact that Bella's face was getting redder by the second.

He sighed, defeated. "Carlisle thinks that the weirdness in Seattle is because of an ass-load of misbehaving newborns," he snorted, "Which means we have even more trouble on our hands."

Bella looked between us questioningly. "There's a series of suspicious murders and disappearances in Seattle that may be due to newborn vampires," I explained, trying to sound calmer than I felt. Bella gulped audibly.

"Personally, I was all for attacking, but, 'We're too low on numbers, Emmett. Let's be patient,'" said Emmett, doing a fairly decent (if somewhat exaggerated) impression of Carlisle. He hopped down from the tree, landing swiftly on Bella's carpet. "Which, if you ask me, is completely ridiculous. I could _totally _take on…" he trailed off, eyes darting around the room. His nose wrinkled in confused as he looked back at me, slightly more somber than before. "Jeez. You weren't kidding."

"I don't know what we're dealing with, Emmett, but I don't like it," I said softly, sitting on the edge of the bed. Bella scooted closer to me, and my hand moved to cover hers, squeezing gently. "Carlisle's right; we shouldn't be attacking. We don't want to draw any more attention to ourselves," I said firmly.

Emmett scoffed and narrowed his eyes, but he wasn't looking at me. His eyes were glued to Bella's laundry hamper, and he took a step closer to it, sniffing deeply. Bella, clearly a little thrown off by his sudden appearance, now spoke up. "Um…stay out of there please?" she asked, her face coloring slightly again.

Emmett just snorted. "I have no interest in your underwear, little sis," he mumbled, taking another sniff. "But whoever they were, they apparently did."

I released Bella's hand and stood up, curious, moving to stand beside him. I mimicked his actions and found that he was right: the smell was concentrated here more than anywhere else in the room. It was almost enough to block out Bella's incredible scent. I furrowed my brow at that realization.

"Uhh…guys?" asked Bella, clearly not liking that two vampires were sniffing around her dirty laundry. I looked over my shoulder and threw her an apologetic glance, laying a hand on Emmett's shoulder and gently pulling him back.

"He's right," I confirmed, "Your visitor seems to have been mostly interested in your hamper."

Bella frowned and stood up, crossing the room and looking down at the small pile of clothes at the bottom of the hamper. She reached in and sifted the through the few articles of clothing, but didn't find anything out of the ordinary. "There's nothing here," she said softly with a shake of her head, "Unless…"

She moved to the front of her dresser and pulled out the first drawer, looking through it briefly. Her frown deepened as she moved down a drawer, then another, then the last, her movements quickening as she went on. She stood up and moved to her (rather small) closet, flipping through the various hanging items. Emmett and I watched her frantic course curiously for a minute before he turned to look at me, one eyebrow rising in question. I simply shrugged in response, having no idea what Bella was up to.

"Bella…?" I asked gently, "What are you doing?"

She didn't answer at first, then, having reached the end of her closet, she turned to look at me with apprehension. "My red blouse…it was dirty the night we were packing, you threw it in the hamper, remember?" I nodded slowly, then stopped the motion abruptly. I met Bella's wide eyes with my own.

"Huh?" interjected Emmett.

I flew to the hamper and dug through it myself, throwing clothes over my head as I went through the small pile. Sure enough: no red blouse. I straightened back up and bit down on my lip. "This isn't good."

Emmett stared down at the hamper for a moment, blinking rapidly before the answer seemed to dawn on him. "A-ha!" he declared, holding up a finger triumphantly. "The vampire stole Bella's shirt!"

I slammed my hand against my forehead. "Yes, Emmett. Brilliant." He merely grinned, not thrown off by my sarcasm.

Bella just groaned and slumped back against the closet door, "Why would they want my blouse?" she asked, though I couldn't tell if the question was directed at us or the ceiling.

"Well," began Emmett, pausing and looking very matter-of-fact, "That…is a very good question. Alice?" he asked, turning to look at me. In any other situation, I would have slapped him.

I shook my head to clear it and moved back to Bella's bed, sitting down on the end of it and thinking what this could mean. It didn't make much sense, really: why would a strange vampire come into the house and leave the human occupant alive, then make off with only a blouse? I mulled over the question for maybe ten seconds before the answer dawned on me.

"It smells like you," I whispered, looking back up. "That must be it. You were wearing it the night before we left, your scent was fresh on it."

Bella looked nervous, and Emmett just looked confused. "Why would some random vampire want Bella's scent?" he asked.

That one I had no answer for. "We should do a round outside," I said to my brother, standing up suddenly and moving to Bella's side, drawing her to me in a protective embrace. "I really don't like this."

She hugged me back tightly, clearly not wanting me to have to leave. I slowly slid one hand under her chin and raised it so that I was looking into her eyes, communicating through looks rather than words. I would give myself to the werewolves before I let anything happen to her. I _had_ to defend her; there was, quite simply, no other option. She bit down on her lip and nodded in understanding, silently allowing me to leave. I leaned forward and kissed her lightly. I didn't fail to notice Emmett, who slinked back into the corner of the room quietly, trying to blend in with the wallpaper.

"Out," I said simply, and he winced.

"Come on, Ali…it's not every day I get to watch –"

"Out," I repeated.

He grumbled nonsensically before moving to the window, stepping up over the sill and, glancing back at us one more time, jumping do the ground.

"Sorry about Em," I said, unable to fight back a grin.

"It's ok," she assured me, mirroring my expression, "I like him a lot. He's…funny," she said, pausing to laugh at the bemused look I was giving her, "and it's hard to be fearing for my life when he's cracking bad jokes all the damn time."

I chuckled softly, cupping her cheek with my hand and coaxing her to look at me. Her warm brown eyes met mine, and she smiled tentatively.

"You're incredible…" I whispered softly, unable to understand how she wasn't terrified right now.

She laughed lightly and glanced down at the floor. "Hardly," she murmured lightly.

I shook my head, lifting her face to look at mine again. "You are," I insisted, trying to convey as much emotion as possible in that one simple statement. "You're strong and brave…and absolutely, breathtakingly gorgeous," I said, leaning forward to kiss her cheek softly before pulling back and meeting her eyes again. Her eyes probed mine, but they would find only sincerity.

"How can you say that…how can you even think that?" she questioned, stepping closer to me and resting her hand on my hip. "Y-you're all so amazing," she stammered, "And you…Alice, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen," she admitted, not breaking eye contact but coloring slightly at the statement. I could help the smile that spread across my face as I heard her heart race, and without another word, I leaned in to kiss her again.

I couldn't get over how incredible she tasted, how perfect her warm lips felt against my cool ones. Her thumb started stroking my hip softly as her lips moved with such tenderness that I nearly melted into the carpet. My instincts were screaming at me to hold her against my body and never let go, to shield her from the many dangers that were converging all at once. The feeling was so overwhelming that I nearly gasped, my arms tightening around her, but still holding her with care. Nothing, _nothing_ could ever mean more to me than Bella…this human girl held firmly in my arms. I didn't think rationally. I had to tell her that she was my singer. I had a sudden, desperate need for her to know and understand the effect she had on me…to know that I loved her with absolutely everything I had.

"Bella…" I whispered as I gently pulled away from her lips, opening my eyes to stare at her perfect face. "Bella, I –"

My words were cut off by a loud, echoing howl not half a mile off. Both of our heads snapped to the window at once, and as the sound signaling the wolves' approach fully registered with me, I growled almost imperceptibly.

Someone should really tell the damn dogs that it's rude to interrupt.

**A/N: *Ducks to avoid the assorted fruit I'm sure some of you are going to throw at me* She'll find out eventually! I promise! Dx**

**This is probably the last update for another two weeks or so since I have a mountain of homework due the day before I leave that I've barely started on. (Stupid AP classes…stupid summer homework…stupid…stupidness.) Which means that I have….2 days to outline 100 pages. Oh man I'm dumb. X_X…**

**I really apologize for the delay, but I promise that after this, you've all got my undivided attention until the end of the summer, and probably during school since I never pay attention, anyway. **

**Anyway, I really like Emmett, hence his prevalence in this chapter. Every tense situation needs a comic relief :D  
**

**Enjoy the chapter and, as always, tell me what you think! **


	14. Chapter 14: What am I Turning Into?

**A/N: I return! Miss me? :D**

**Fun fact: The first part of this chapter was drafted on a tiny Days Inn notepad that I filched from the hotel we stayed at on the way back from Michigan because I absolutely had to write something or I'd explode. **

…**Writer urges are scary. The second part wasn't as easy because…well, the first time I wrote it, it sucked…I literally had it uploaded with my finger hovering over the 'submit' button before I got to the end and went: "This isn't what I was trying to say AT ALL…" But I'm happier with how it turned out, so enjoy! :) **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, which means I don't own Edward, which sucks because it means I can't kill him in slow and painful manners far too disturbing to be posted in such an innocent, non-descript little disclaimer. (Does anyone ever read this shit, anyway?)**

Chapter 14: What am I Turning Into?

_Shit._

Thinking quickly, I scanned the future to find only darkness.

_Double shit._

That meant the wolves were coming. Here. Now.

Despite my recent civil conversation with Jacob, I still felt a rush of uneasiness at the prospect of several unfamiliar werewolves closing in, especially with Bella present. My instincts howled at me to take my human to safety, almost drowning out the quiet, rationalizing voice that tried to assure me that the wolves would not harm Bella. My body curled around her protectively without my consent.

Bella picked up on the movement, giving me a curious look.

"They're coming," I whispered solemnly.

Despite my anxiety at the current situation, Bella giggled softly at my declaration. I narrowed my eyes at her.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered, still sporting an amused grin, "You sound like a survivor in a badly-written movie about a zombie apocalypse."

My glare hardened. She had a point, but I was too on edge to laugh right now. "When referring to either a zombie horde or a pack of frantic werewolves, the same terminology may be applied. The _point_ remains the same: they're coming, and I don't like it."

Bella's smile turned serious, her brows knitting together in confusion. "Why would they come here?"

I shook my head. "Your guess is as good as mine, but…" my voice trailed off as the answer hit me. Of course! If I wasn't still maintaining a defensive position around Bella on instinct, I would have smacked myself. "Scratch that. They probably scented the strange vampire," I growled.

Bella's eyes widened, and she nodded in understanding. "Could they help us?"

_No. No no no, hell no, never. Nuh-uh. _

"Maybe," I mumbled, completely throwing off the thoughts in my head. I couldn't let my instincts rule how I felt about the wolves; it just wasn't fair.

I listened carefully to the sounds of the approaching figures, realizing with some surprise that of the three, only two where in wolf form; there was no mistaking the distinctly human tread of the third. I felt myself relax slightly, taking this information as a sign that this wasn't an attack. I heard Emmett move to stand at the base of the tree beneath Bella's window, growling dangerously. "Stupid mutts…" he muttered softly.

I moved to look out of the window, still strategically keeping Bella behind me. I saw that my assessment had been correct when a boy, shirtless and even larger than Jacob, crashed through the trees, flanked on either side by two enormous wolves. Their forest scents wafted in through the window. I took another brief sniff and noticed that Jacob wasn't among them; though I'd never smelled the boy in his wolf form, I was fairly confident in my ability to do so, and neither of the wolves present carried quite the right odor. I felt surprised at the ease with which I discerned all of this, as well as the fact that I now seemed to be able to tell the scents of different wolves apart. Before, they had all been rotten piles of garbage emitting a putrid stench with no identifying qualities. Now, I was starting to pick up on the vague differences.

I could tell that the boy in the middle was the Alpha, both from his stance and from the scent he was emitting. I could simultaneously scent both him and the barely concealed wolf within him, telling me that of all the wolves, he was the most harmonious with his non-human form. He moved with a sort of sureness that only comes from experience, whereas the wolves on either side of him, both thick with puppy smell, paced restlessly.

Emmett seemed to notice none of this, and I saw him tense further, body quivering, barely holding back from attacking as he stopped breathing through his nose. "What are you doing here?" he growled menacingly, earning answering rumbles from each of the wolves. The Alpha, however, seemed unconcerned with him.

"Investigating a strange scent," came the reply in a neutral tone, though I did notice his nose flicker in irritation and his eyes narrow ever so slightly on my brother. "One of yours, but not of your family."

"What about it?" answered Emmett, not moving from his defensive position.

"Emmett," I hissed, "Don't make this any harder than it has to be!"

Four pairs of eyes shot up to meet mine through the open window. Three of them quickly dropped, but the Alpha boy continued to stare at me with a look of confusion on his face. "You. You're the one I want to talk to."

I raised an eyebrow at that, "May I ask why?"

He shrugged, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards for the briefest of instants before responding, "You don't stink."

Emmett looked up at me, then back at the three pack members. "Huh?"

"You stink, big leech," he said, "She doesn't. Not as much. I'd rather talk to her."

Emmett met my gaze, open his mouth to protest loudly, but something in my eye must have shut him up. "Switch," I said simply, jumping down from the window at a pace far too quick for human eyes as Emmett raced up the tree beside me.

I looked at the wolves warily, tensing slightly, feeling more on edge than I had during my conversation with Jacob due to the increase in numbers as well as Bella's close proximity. Still, as I watched, the two wolves visibly relaxed at the switch, halting their constant pacing. The boy's eyes softened and he allowed himself a deep breath.

"Your scent. It's changed," he muttered softly.

I nodded slowly, unable to give him an answer. At this point, I just wanted him gone. "That isn't why you came here."

He smirked slightly, then frowned, raising his head to the window and taking another deep sniff. I growled softly as his eyes narrowed on Bella, unable to control the involuntary reaction. He ignored my soft warning and looked back at me.

"Who's been around here?" he asked gruffly.

"Unclear," I answered, "neither my brother nor I recognize the scent. It certainly isn't one of ours, but it doesn't seem to have done any damage." I decided to leave the part about the missing blouse out.

The Alpha's eyes darkened. "A strange vampire entered your territory without you realizing it?" he growled in disbelief. I winced at his accusatory tone.

I know how he meant it – that my family should have picked up on an intruding vampire within our territory and quickly moved to discern whether or not it posed a threat – yet my mind took his words a different way. _I should have seen this. I can't believe I didn't see this. _

Still, I knew I wouldn't have to bring up my visions in this conversation. My thoughts shifted from self-chastising to defensive. "My family was rather occupied in watching further north for Victoria, and Bella and I were out of town. They must have slipped through, whoever they were."

The boy wasn't satisfied. "Why would a random vampire drop in on a house with a sleeping human in it for no reason…and leave the human _alive?_" he questioned, his eyes flickering briefly to Charlie's window as a particularly loud snore echoed across the lawn. I didn't particularly feel the need to answer him, but after several awkward seconds passed, Bella apparently did.

"My blouse," she blurted out, "They took one of my blouses. We think they want my scent."

I winced, a motion that was not lost on the Alpha. I immediately regretted it.

His eyes blazed as he spoke, his voice coming out low and dangerous. "I would consider that a rather important piece of information. Anything else you're hiding?"

I bit my tongue to stop the growl that threatened to escape just as Emmett called out, "Yeah, we hired this random vampire to run around Forks just to confuse the hell out of you. What the fuck do you think?"

The boy's eyes shot to the window, his body trembling ever so slightly. The two wolves at his sides both bared their teeth at the open window, clearly unappreciative of the bad joke. I shot a warning glance up at my brother before holding my hands up defensively.

"Hang on a second. You're right, I should have mentioned the blouse. It's just a theory I developed literally seven minutes ago, so I didn't voice it. No one's trying to hide anything," I said softly, watching as the shaking boy slowed and eventually stilled.

The boy squared his jaw and looked at me carefully, probably deciding whether or not to believe me. "What's your name?" he asked suddenly, throwing me off.

"Alice," I answered simply, "And yours?"

"Sam," he replied, continuing his scrutiny of me. I began to feel a bit uncomfortable under his gaze, but I didn't say anything. "You tell your family that if anything else fishy happens, you keep us in the loop. And I do mean _you_, because you're the only one I've met whose scent doesn't make me want to kill you." The words were spoken lightly, but there was no mistaking the threat in his voice.

His tone annoyed me, but I nodded in agreement. He turned toward the trees before stopping and turning back around to face me again. "One last thing," he pointed up at Bella, "she still with that leech guy?"

I shook my head. Normally, I would have left it at that, but pride and a desire to verbally claim her overwhelmed me, causing my next words to slip out without my permission. "She's with me."

That raised a few eyebrows. I must say, a wolf with a bewildered look on its face is pretty funny.

"I…see," was all Sam said.

"Is that a problem?" I asked innocently.

Sam shook his head slowly. "From what I learned from Jake, it's actually a bit of an improvement. I can't promise he'll see it that way, though."

I nodded, knowing that his words were a warning instead of a threat. Without another word, he turned again and fled through the trees, the two wolves following behind him. In a flash, Emmett stood beside me, glaring after them.

"Emmett?"

"Hmm?"

"Do I smell funny?"

My big brother turned to me slowly and leaned closer, sniffing me. After a minute, he growled in disapproval and turned away. "I can't tell. I can't smell anything past those putrid mutts." He held his nose for emphasis.

"They don't smell putrid to me…" I said absently, then turned back up to look at Bella. A half second passed, and I quickly moved to the windowsill. She smiled before wrapping her arms around me tightly.

"Sleep," I whispered, "we have school in the morning."

"Urrrpummph…" came the reply as she turned to head into my chest, muffling the sound. I giggled and gently pulled back, kissing her quickly on the lips as I did so.

"Do I really have to go to school?" she whined. "I think that 'crazed vampire hunting down me and my family' constitutes a perfectly good excuse…"

"Mmm. I think they'd call B.S. on that one. Nice try, though."

She pouted, leaning against the window frame and crossing her arms. I could see this wasn't going to be that simple.

"It'll be a lot easier to protect you and the rest of the unsuspecting teenage population of Forks," I offered. "Really. Get some sleep."

She sighed softly, then uncrossed her arms and leaned in closer to me. "Be careful, ok?" she whispered against my lips, her voice heavy with concern. I closed the distance, kissing her again, longer than before. I'd never admit it, but her worry touched me deeply. I heard her heart flutter as I pulled away and smiled.

"I will. I promise."

I jumped down to the grass, ignoring the smug look on Emmett's face as I quickly ran to the tree line.

* * *

"Wow. You got it bad," said Emmett, leaning back against a tree trunk.

"Shut up," I muttered, lounging on a fallen log and closing my eyes, tuning in to the forest around me. Beyond the clearing, I detected nothing but the soothing sounds of the night. Good.

I expected some smart-ass retort from Emmett, but was instead met with thoughtful silence. Curious, I opened one eye, turning to watch him. He was staring out into the trees, his gaze far off.

"Emmett?" He seemed to snap back to reality, turning to me. "Commander Space-out?" I teased.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Thinking about those wolves."

"What about them?"

He looked at me, suspicion in his eyes. "Why did they say you smelled different?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Jacob said the same thing. They smell different to me, too. Before, when I met Jacob, the stench was overpowering, but…" I trailed off, searching for the right words. "I don't know. Now it's just a mild annoyance."

"Something's happening to you, Ali."

"I know."

"Think it has anything to do with her?"

I turned away, sighing heavily. A few minutes passed before I closed my eyes and whispered, "She's my singer."

"_What?_" he said incredulously. "I thought she was Ed's…"

I shook my head, easing my eyes open to stare at the log I sat on. "No. She's mine. He smelled her through my mind."

He shifted against the tree, unnerved. "I didn't know he could do that."

"He can't."

Something occurred to me then, and I turned back to my big brother. Emmett was rarely in a serious mood, and I decided to use this chance to my advantage. "What was it like, Em? When Rose found you?"

His eyes met mine and they softened slightly. I saw him shifting through decade's worth of memories, casting his mind back to a time before his change. Something I still couldn't do.

"I was…in pain," he started, looking uncomfortable. "I mean that makes sense, I was being mauled by a bear for crying out loud. But it was different…when I saw her. I was lying there bleeding, but I didn't feel pain anymore. I felt this pull…at the time I was so out of it that I thought it was heaven, calling to me. I thought she was an angel. Nothing mattered but following her wherever she'd lead me."

He turned to look down at the ground, crossing his arms over his chest. "I kept thinking I'd lose consciousness any minute now and be able to leave with this angel. Somehow though, I managed to stay awake. She picked me up and ran…everything blurred together and I was sure I was dead. She kept talking to me, telling me that I was going to live and be alright, that she'd save me. I believed her. I believed every word she told me."

I sat up slowly, hanging on his every word. I could see the truth in his eyes as he looked back up at me. "That's beautiful," I said.

"That pull I felt…Bella's gotta feel it too, Alice. I knew deep down what I was…that I was Rose's soul mate."

I didn't respond.

"She knows, right?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow. I just shook my head.

He dropped his arms and looked at me with exasperation. "Oh man, seriously? Why didn't you tell her?"

"Emmett!" I scolded, standing up and rounding on him. "I don't want her thinking that the only reason I'm with her is because of the way she smells!"

Shock flitted across his features. "I…you…_what?_" he stuttered, "Ali, you _know_ that's not what it's like!"

"Yes…" I agreed, "_I_ know that. But when she was with Edward, it was different."

"How?"

"When I first told her that her blood no longer sang to Edward, she was mad, like the only reason he'd wanted to be with her was because she smells good. I don't want it to seem like that," I confessed.

"But it's different for you, because…?" he prompted, seeming genuinely curious.

I sat back down on the log, thinking back, mulling over a few ideas in my head. In truth, I was still figuring it out, too. "He didn't feel the instincts, not in full, because all he was getting was the scent," I whispered, feeling the truth of my words as I spoke them. "He only smelled her…she said she'd catch him looking at her like she was dessert. I think he was intrigued by the fact that a human could both smell so good to him and block his gift…I think he wanted her for different reasons than I do. He was curious, and that led him in. He constantly had to fight to not bite her because he wasn't feeling the deeper pull…the instinct that told him to protect her. He couldn't stand to be around her even during normal circumstances, but I never had the same exact problem."

"She smelled incredible, but you didn't feel the urge to bite?" he asked.

I shook my head slowly. "I did…I do. But it's usually subconscious. The protection instincts are usually much stronger, unless she's bleeding, or I haven't fed. I can't imagine harming her, but her blood…it's like, when I'm around her, I'm two people: myself and the monster."

"What do you mean?"

"I…I don't know!" I growled in frustration and fell back against the log. "It's like…it's like…" I stopped, completely unable to describe what it was _like._ I snarled and shot off the log, pacing in rapid circles around the clearing.

"Alice…" said Emmett, his tone wary.

"It's so _aggravating,_ Emmett! Every time I see her, there are a million things going on with my body that I just don't understand! I don't even know how to describe it!" I stopped pacing and hung my head, pulling at my hair.

"Hey…hey. Stop that," said Emmett, stepping away from the tree and resting his hands on my shoulders. "You've got a lot going on right now, I know. It's instinctual overload. You're not used to it. Being with a human was bound to be different than being with another vampire. We just have to figure this all out. And we will."

I took a deep, unnecessary breath, letting his words soothe me. "Thanks Emmett…" I whispered as he gave me a bear hug, lifting me off the ground briefly before setting me back down.

"Of course. And I hope you know that by 'we,' I mean 'Carlisle,' because I'm scientifically challenged. Oh!" he added, pointing a finger at me, "And if you _ever_ tell anyone about how sappy I got earlier, I'll rearrange your little pixie face."

I burst out laughing, punching my brother playfully on the arm. "Alright, deal. You're pretty good at it, though. I think you should be on one of those primetime sitcoms. You sure look like a giant sap."

He stared at me, face completely devoid of all emotion. I glared back. Several minutes past before I lost patience. "Geez, why are you looking at me like that?"

"I was imagining what your nose would look like shoved into your left ear," he answered in a deadpan voice. I punched him again.

"Keep dreaming, Bear Boy. We should probably focus on actually protecting the perimeter now."

He rolled his eyes and stepped back against the tree, closing his eyes. I moved several feet away and sat cross-legged while taking a quick stock of the forest, still brimming with normal, completely non-threatening night life.

Slowly, my mind wandered back to our conversation.

_Every time I see her, there are a million things going on with my body that I just don't understand…_

_He couldn't stand to be around her even during normal circumstances, but I never had the same exact problem...  
_

_It's like, when I'm around her, I'm two people: myself and the monster._

_Two people._

_Myself and the monster. _

_Two people. _

_Monster. _

_Two._

I felt another painful twinge in my head, and a deep, throaty growl seemed to echo. I glanced around at the forest quickly, but when the night sounds continued uninterrupted, I realized that the sound had come from within my head.

I wasn't prepared for the sudden assault I was about to endure. Bella's heartbeat pounded in my ears, twice as loud as it had ever been before. The fire in my throat burned, throbbing in time with my forehead.

_Kill her. Protect her. Kill her. Protect her. _

I clamped my hands over my ears in an attempt to shut out the thoughts in my head. I heard the scream before I realized it was my own, echoing through the forest. The pain hit my skull again and again, feeling as though I was being pummeled over and over by fists of stone. My sight blurred, then faded, then lit up in a sudden explosion of bright light that made my eyes burn with the intensity.

Standing in the light were three distinct figures: a man and a woman side by side with a small girl between them. I didn't recognize any of them. The girl took several steps away from the light and seemed to look at me with a frantic expression on her face. I heard her call my name before the figures faded into the growing intensity of the light...

"ALICE!" bellowed Emmett, shaking me roughly by the shoulders. The headache dissipated instantly and found myself back in reality, the realization hitting me like a freight train.

I opened my eyes and Emmett released his hold on me but continued to stare down at me with concern. A last, quick throb hit my forehead and I groaned, clutching my forehead and easing myself into a sitting position.

"Are you alright?" my brother asked as I carefully stood up.

"Yeah…" I grumbled. "Vision."

"What was it?" he asked, suddenly on alert, scanning the trees instinctively. I shook my head slowly.

"Not about Victoria. Or…anything, really. I have no idea."

Bella's heartbeat had again faded into background noise, and the fire in my throat had been reduced to a tiny flicker. I shuddered visibly at the sudden assault on my senses.

"I need to run," I said simply, not even waiting for Emmett's acknowledgment before taking off through the trees.

**A/N: …Le gasp! **

**I actually have logical explanations as to what's happening with Alice, but you're going to have to wait for that. **

**All this drama is aging me, so the next chapter will probably be lighter. Let me know what you think!**


	15. Chapter 15: The Unfortunate Epiphany

**A/N: I wrote this chapter really quickly, mainly in an attempt to piss off my history homework. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Twilight iz r not myn kthxbai. **

Chapter 15: The Unfortunate Epiphany

"That's it. I'm officially worried about you," said Rosalie, crossing her arms over her chest for emphasis and stepping in front of the door. I sighed, knowing exactly where this was going. She'd managed to pull several details of last night's incident from Emmett, who was currently looking very apologetic and nervous under my hard glare. _Traitor._

I turned back to Rose. "Yes, she's my singer…yes, I should have told you…no, I don't think being around her is unhealthy for me…no, I'm not out of my mind…and yes, I do plan to turn her eventually," I explained, answering her unspoken questions as I saw them play out in my mind.

Rose's eyes bulged at the last one. "I can't believe that you –"

"…would endanger the safety of the family? Unlikely. I have complete confidence in our ability to control Bella as a newborn."

She frowned, then opened her mouth again. "But what if she –"

"…comes to regret her decision? That one's easy. Once the decision has been finalized, I'll be able to see her future with us, and I'll tell her of any unexpected difficulties she might encounter."

A moment of silence passed, my blonde sister seething at me. She tried one last time. "Ok, and if –"

I cut her off with a humorless chuckle. "You too? You sound like Edward. I'm not tainting her immortal soul."

Rosalie rolled her eyes and uncrossed her arms, throwing them over her head. "I give up!"

"Rose..."

"I still think this is a monumentally bad idea."

"Rose."

"The girl's so young, she has _no_ idea what she's giving up right now."

"Rose!"

"It's not that I don't like her, Alice, but to _willingly take her life _–"

"_ROSE!"_

She stopped her mini-rant and glared at me. I stared back at her. We stood like that for several minutes until I saw her eyes well up with tears that wouldn't fall. She re-crossed her arms in a huff and turned away in an attempt to cover her eyes. I quickly realized what this was really about. Rosalie's argument with me was really an attempt to cover up her true despair and resentment over the current situation. Family ties had always meant so much to her, and now, in her eyes, they were being severed. Without another thought, I reached out and hugged her tightly, ignoring her grumbling protests.

"I miss them, too," I said simply, and she relaxed slightly, then hugged me back.

"I hate all of this fuss…" she confessed in a soft, bitter tone.

I sighed heavily, but didn't let go of her. "Rosalie…do you remember what it was like to find Emmett in the woods? Do you remember the instincts? Could you _really_ have just walked away from him?" I bit down on my lip in the silence that followed, praying she'd relent.

"I said I hate the fuss, not that I don't understand it."

I beamed and let her go, smiling at her tentatively. She didn't smile back, but her expression was much softer. "I promise you, Rose…everything with Bella will be fine, and we'll find Ed and Jazz."

She nodded slowly as the three of us turned to the garage.

* * *

"Wake up," I called softly, "You're going to be late."

"Murgffff…" muttered Bella softly in her sleep, turning towards me. Though she shifted, she didn't quite wake up. I smiled at the serene expression on her face, stepping down from the windowsill with care. I quickly forgot my mission to rouse the girl and instead stood by her bedside, watching her at peace for just another moment. I hadn't seen her look so calm since Jacksonville.

Slowly, I reached out my hand, resting it on her cheek. "Bella?" I tried again.

"Unnnrrrfff," came the reply. She leaned into my hand, trapping it against her shoulder.

I smirked, deciding to redouble my efforts. As I gazed upon my unsuspecting, helpless prey, I felt my body tense with excitement. Venom flooded my mouth and the girl's heartbeat throbbed noisily in my ear, drowning out all other sounds. I felt delighted to have caught such a beautiful, delicious-smelling girl at such a perfect moment…

I pounced then, a low growl emitting from my chest. "Waaaaaaake upppppp!" I rumbled as her eyes shot open, a soft cry of protest slipping from between her lips as I pinned her to the bed, grinning down at her in triumph.

"I don't remember setting the alarm clock to 'tackle,'" she mumbled sleepily, but the slow smile that spread across her face told me she really didn't mind.

I purred in delight, leaning into her and nuzzling her neck softly, smiling wider when I heard her giggle. I moved from her neck to capture her lips with my own in a breathless kiss.

"Mmm, hun, you _wish_ you could set your alarm clock to greet you like this every morning," I whispered as I pulled away, resting my head on her chest and releasing her hands from my gentle grip. She moved her left hand to stroke my hair while her right settled on my lower back.

"Nah, the alarm clock couldn't do this half as well as you could," she countered, kissing the top of my head. I muttered a soft agreement, nuzzling further into her chest. "But I'd love to set _you_ to greet me like this every morning…"

I looked up at her, grinning broadly at her words. "I suppose you _could…_" I mused, tapping my finger to my chin in a thoughtful expression, "But you'd have to find the right button, first."

That got her bright red. She opened her mouth to respond, but I jumped off the bed before she could, looking down at her with an innocent expression on my face. "But let's get you ready for school."

She looked at me and groaned in frustration, "Aliiice…"

I cocked an eyebrow at her. "Would you like to be late?"

"Yes…" she countered, not meeting my eyes.

"Too bad!" I chirped, skipping over to her closet and opening the doors, carefully inspecting the rack. "If you don't hurry up, I'm just going to start pulling out clothes and making you into my own little doll," I threatened in a singsong voice.

She bolted off the bed and made a mad dash to the bathroom, "I'm up, I'm up, I'm up!"

I pouted, crossing my arms and leaning back against her bedroom door. "You are _no _fun."

20 minutes later, she stood ready, wearing a pair of faded jeans and a t-shirt. Had she been anyone else, I would have protested this choice of wardrobe, but Bella looked beautiful in my eyes no matter what she wore. I watched with amusement as she hurried down the stairs and reached for the hook that normally held her car keys, but was currently empty.

"Crap!" she swore, eyes scanning the room, trying to remember where she might have put them.

"Upstairs, in your desk, third drawer on the right," I said mechanically, "But don't even think about it."

She looked at me with curiosity as I raced passed her and out through the front door. I stood by the driveway triumphantly, watching as she ran out to follow me, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Alice…what's that in my driveway?"

I giggled, "You don't recognize it?"

She blinked. "Well…yes…but why is it in my driveway?"

"Because I could no longer continue my dull, hopelessly dreary life without one," I said dramatically.

She rolled her eyes and stepped off the porch. "You're so full of it. And did it have to be yellow?"

"Would you have preferred neon pink?"

She paused to glare at me. "You're not funny," she muttered, opening the passenger door to my brand new Porsche 911 Turbo and slipping inside.

"You're mom's not funny," I countered lamely, getting in behind the wheel and turning the ignition.

She scoffed and pointed accusingly at me. "_That_ was a horrible comeback."

"You're a horribly comeback," I said cheerfully, and her answering groan quickly turned into a frightened yelp as I gunned the accelerator.

"Jeez, Alice, slow down!" she yelled, covering her face with her arms.

"What's that?" I called, "I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome this engine is!"

She winced as I made a sharp right turn. "Maybe _you_ won't turn into a pancake if we wreck, but we can't all be bulletproof!"

"Actually, I don't know if I'm bulletproof, exactly…I've never actually been shot."

"Good to know! Now slow down!" she insisted, a slight tremor in her voice.

I frowned, easing back until the needle wasn't in triple digits anymore. "Better?"

"Not really, but I'll take it."

I looked over at her, not bothering to keep my eyes on the road. "You know you're perfectly safe, right?"

She met my gaze and nodded slowly, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. "It's just…instinct, you know? Me and fast-moving vehicles are normally a deadly combination," she leaned towards me, gently resting her head on my shoulder. "I know you won't get me killed. I just worry."

I gasped softly, causing her to look up at me in alarm. "What?"

"Eureka!" I cried, "I've found it!"

"Huh?" she asked, looking at me like I had three heads.

"Your sense of self-preservation! It _does_ exist!"

I expected a slap or at least a huff, but when I was met with silence, I glanced over to find her staring at me with the most deadpan expression I've ever seen. I stared right back, steering the car effortlessly into the school parking lot despite my apparent lack of attention. The staring contest lasted all of seven seconds before we both burst out laughing at the same time. "I hate you," she declared between giggles.

I pulled the car into a parking space and turned to her, leaning across the seat and looking at her with a smug expression. "Really?"

"Yes," she whispered, closing the distance between our lips and kissing me softly. "I can't stand you," she added as she pulled away, only to pull me closer and reconnect our lips in a deeper kiss. "Really…" she panted a moment later after leaning back again for air, "you're evil," she finished half-heartedly, her words cutting off into a soft groan as I moved from her lips to her neck, inhaling her incredible scent while I kissed the soft flesh, momentarily forgetting that we were in a public place.

Thankfully (not), someone kindly decided to remind me.

My door opened suddenly, and I barely had any time to react as a huge hand reached in and grabbed me by the back of the neck, tearing me away from Bella and pulling me from the car.

"_What the fuck do you think you're doing?_" roared an enraged Jacob Black as he held me against the side of the truck that I had parked next to, his hand tightening like a vice around my neck, sending a painful spider web of cracks across my throat. I reached up automatically and tried to pull him off, but even in human form, his strength was incredible, and I couldn't move his hand. I saw that he was shaking with rage, barely concealing the wolf within. The Jacob I had spoken to with civility was gone. Instinctively, I let out a strangled hiss, thrashing against his iron grip. I was vaguely aware of the fact that Bella was calling my name and scrambling out of the car.

"You were _biting her?_" he bellowed in my face, forcing a waft of dog breath into my nose, "_Did you think I'd ever let you live for that?_"

"JAKE!" called Bella, shoving against the tall Indian boy, who didn't so much as budge from her actions. "She wasn't biting me! Look!"

Slowly, the quivering werewolf turned in her direction, his eyes narrowing as he took in the puncture-free skin at her neck. His eyes flickered back to me, and in a show of surrender, I went slack in his grip. His fingers loosened just enough to allow me to speak, my voice coming out hoarse.

"I wouldn't harm her," I growled low, "you know that."

He dropped me suddenly, though I easily landed on my feet and straightened back up, not backing down. I felt the cracks in my neck slowly closed up. Jacob was still quivering, telling me that his rage was far from quelled.

"How could you!" he barked, but Bella answered before I had a chance to respond, stepping between us and turning on him, her eyes livid with barely concealed fury.

"Touch her again," she warned dangerously, "and _I_ might not let _you_ live for that."

Jacob stared at her incredulously, clearly thrown off by her threat, yet her words proved effective when he took a small step back. "_I _wasn't the one going for your _throat!_" he exclaimed, his eyes again flickering to me.

"It wasn't a bite! Jeez, Jake!" she scowled, "You really think she'd do that to me?"

"I don't know _what_ she'd do anymore!" he clenched his fists at his sides and took another step towards me. I didn't move.

"I trusted you…" he growled, "I thought you were _different_. And you…" he seemed to be struggling for words, "you…take her…you fucking sicko!"

"Stop," I snapped, taking a step closer to him so that we were just inches apart. I had to crane my neck to look up at him, but the fear flickering in his eyes told me that my glare was just as intimidating as his height. "I didn't _take her,_" I hissed. "No one forced her to be with me."

He broke the stare and faced Bella, tears welling up in his eyes. "I didn't believe it when Sam told me. I had to come see it for myself. And then I saw you in her car…" his voice broke and he stared down at the ground, fighting back tears. "How could you do this to me, Bella? Choose _her_ over me?"

Bella's anger did not dissipate. "No. I don't think so. You just completely manhandled my girlfriend. You know why I'm with her, Jake? I love her. And I'm not going to apologize for that and if you _ever_ pull that shit again, I will hurt you," she warned through clenched teeth. "I don't _care_ if I'm the only one here not in the supernatural club, I'll find a way," she enunciated the last words, making Jacob flinch.

"Bella, it's alright." I reached out to her, resting my hand on her shoulder and pulling her back to me. When she didn't resist, I slowly wrapped my arms around her waist and felt her relax against me. "I'm sorry, Jacob," I whispered, though he was just looking at the ground and shaking his head. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You don't care," he mumbled, turning away and running to his parked motorcycle before jumping on and exiting the school parking lot at full throttle. As soon as he was out of sight, Bella sighed heavily.

"I shouldn't have been so mean…" she muttered, shaking her head. I hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek. "I just…god, I got so mad when he did that to you. I couldn't think straight."

"It's ok, Bella," I said soothingly as I rubbed her back, "he was out of line. He just needs time to calm down."

She nodded just as a loud squeal of tires announced two things to the entire student body: 1) my siblings were here and 2) Emmet was driving.

Sure enough, a huge jeep pulled into the lot and barreled down on a nearby parking space, swerved, then pulled into another one beside it. "Fake out!" hooted Emmett from the open window, as if the parking space he'd just rejected could feel the sting of his words. I heard Rosalie laugh quietly as she hopped out of the passenger seat.

"I will never complain about your driving again," whispered Bella to me as she watched Emmett warily.

"I heard that!" called my big brother, jumping down from the Jeep and slamming the door carelessly behind him. They both approached us, Emmett with a smug smile and Rose with a bored expression. "Sorry we're late, ladies, needed to grab some breakfast." They both stopped about ten feet away from Bella and I and, in perfect synchronization, tilted their heads, sniffed, then scowled and held their noses. The sight would have been hilarious if I hadn't known why they were reacting that way.

"Jacob was nice enough to swing by for a visit," I confirmed, causing them both to growl softly.

"I'm going to have to talk to him later…" said Bella absently. I could see in her eyes that she was still angry, which surprised me. She rarely got this wound up.

"Be gentle with him, ok?" I requested, not entirely sure why I was taking pity on the wolf boy who'd had my throat in a death grip not five minutes ago.

"Why should I?" she asked, gently running her fingers over my neck where the skin had cracked. "He attacked you…"

I felt strange at how backwards the situation now seemed. I should be the one with the grudge against Jacob, yet I couldn't get rid of the image of him lying defenseless at the borderline, sleeping soundly on the hard ground. I knew that he wouldn't have attacked like that had he not had a good reason to, and from the way I had been kissing Bella's neck, it probably had looked a lot like I was biting her. I couldn't blame him at all for his reaction. I sighed heavily, linking my arm through Bella's and walking towards the building, Emmett and Rosalie following closely behind.

"It had been instinct, Bella," I explained calmly, "you shouldn't blame him for that."

_Quit defending the dog, _I mentally scolded myself.

Bella sighed heavily and nodded, taking my hand in hers as we walked inside.

* * *

"Why was he here?" hissed Rosalie in a voice far too soft and quick for any of the nearby students to pick up on. "Bella said something about him attacking you?"

"The wolves are antagonized right now," I whispered back, "and…well, Bella and I were in the car and he thought I was biting her…"

Her worried look turned smug. "And what made him think that?"

I felt my face heat up.

"Jeez, Alice, you're blushing!" she gasped.

"I am _not!_" I turned away in an attempt to hide my face from my sister. Up front, Mr. Sindel was going over radicals and imaginary numbers; nothing I hadn't learned dozens of times before. Still, I tried to focus on the lesson rather than the seething blonde next to me.

"What haven't you told me?"

I started jotting down a perfect transcription of the lecture. So absorbed was I in my task that I even included all of the 'um's and 'Do you get it now?'s and the brief, almost reverent speech about his wonderful graphing calculator.

"Alice."

"…A fabulous piece of technology, it even has a cooking timer…"

She grabbed my arm, shaking roughly. "Alice! You are not blowing me off for _math!_" she hissed. I growled and dropped my pencil, turning sharply.

"Something's wrong with me, alright?" I exploded, "I'm running up a temperature, I'm getting headaches, I somehow managed to _fall asleep,_ I cried, my visions are out of whack, my senses are going haywire and hey, guess what?" I said in a mock cheery tone, "I apparently can't see werewolves!"

She froze and gawked at me, absorbing all the things I'd just said. I took a deep, unnecessary breath and turning back to Mr. Sindel, who was still looking at his calculator as if he wanted to propose to it right there. Slowly, Rosalie became capable of movement once again.

"I'm sorry."

I sighed, rubbing my hands over my face in frustration. "I know, Rose," I said in a much gentler tone, "Truth is, I don't understand half of what's going on. All I know is –"

The classroom faded suddenly as a vision overtook my senses.

* * *

_Edward was sitting on the edge of a bed in what looked like a hotel room. His hair was in complete disarray and he wore only a loose-fitting pair of pants and an old t-shirt. He looked so disheveled that it worried me, but his words were spoken in a comforting, level tone. _

_ "Alice," he began simply, "I'm sorry, first of all, for running like that. I imagine it's created quite a lot of confusion at home." _

Damn straight,_ I wanted to reply. Too bad my visions were only one-way. Still, I was beyond relieved to see him, looking a bit ruffled, but otherwise fine. _

_ "Please understand…I was only checking up on a possible threat to Bella and the rest of the family. Victoria didn't go as far as we originally thought and I reached her when I was tracking her escape route. I got close enough to hear her speculating about something that disturbed me before I lost her in the water…"_

_ He shifted, then stood up and crossed to the window, peeking out behind the heavy curtains. "She was curious about a growing settlement of newborns." _

Oh god.

_ "Jasper and Seth are fine. I knew Jasper was the only one I could trust with this, and his skills have proven invaluable in our efforts to lower the size of the group. We keep Seth close, but we don't let him fight. Tell the wolves that; I'm sure they'll want to know where their newest pack member's gone to. I couldn't let any of you know where we were going because I knew you'd follow. I don't want any danger. You're far safer there, away from all of this. Though, I admit…my reasons were partly selfish. I didn't want anyone else with me at all. I used it partly as an excuse to run away and for that I ask forgiveness. I hope you can at least appreciate the work I've done in my absence." _

_ I growled inwardly, wishing he'd at least told us so we could be aware of a possible danger. I wish he'd at least tell me where the settlement was so I had a better idea of the situation, but it couldn't be too far or Edward wouldn't have worried in the first place…_

_ "I figured you could handle Victoria easily when she next attacked and I was worried about what a growing settlement of newborns so close would mean for our safety. I wasn't thinking. I just had to look into it. I originally thought Victoria had had something to do with this, but none of the newborns we've caught and questioned know anything about her, which is a relief."_

_ He paced to the bed, then back to the window. _

_ "I wouldn't even be telling you this if our efforts were completely successful, but…well, they seem to be up to something. I can't read much beyond their bloodlust, but I've never seen newborns act so organized. Jasper said he'd seen this in the armies, but territorial disputes are long over, so we're not sure. Several of the newborns ran off last night and headed west. We're not sure what they were up to. Anyway..."_

_ He ran a hand through his messy hair. _

_"Just…know what we're doing. And that we're alive. And keep your eyes open, because there's more than just Victoria out there." _

* * *

"Alice?" whispered Rosalie as I came back to reality, "Alice? What did you see?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but stopped, taking a minute to think over what I'd just learned.

Victoria had been curious about a growing settlement of newborns…which wouldn't be too suspicious, since just the concept of a large group of newborns anywhere near the area would get one wondering, and with all the traveling she'd been doing, it wasn't odd to think that she'd come across them if they were as close as Edward was speculating. But the timing was just too perfect.

_A growing settlement of newborns...that's got to be Seattle! _The murders and disappearances made slightly more sense, although I'd suspected vampiric activity as soon as I'd heard of it. A newborn colony in Seattle. Huh…

And Victoria had been thinking about it…and they were organized…which newborns didn't tend to do…

_Uh oh. _

My eyes widened as I fit in the last piece of the puzzle. Edward had said they hadn't been able to completely follow the colony's movement, and some of them had escaped west recently. Toward Forks. The other night. When I'd scented a strange vampire in Bella's room.

"_Rose!_" I hissed, "Victoria's creating a newborn army! That's it!"

"_What?_"

I quickly explained my vision to her as well as my thoughts, watching as her face grew more and more ashen at my words.

"But…I…if is was an army, how the _hell_ did Ed and Jazz not pick up on that?"

"Edward relies on his mind-reading ability…he questioned the newborns and none of them had heard of her, so he didn't think she had anything to do with this!"

"But how wouldn't he pick that up, if she was the one making the army?"

I frowned, then gasped. "Because she's not…"

"But you said –"

"She knows about Edward's ability!" I blurted, "Someone else would be making the army for her, making sure none of the newborns know who she is or else he'd know what she was planning! And they have…Bella's scent…"

My breath caught in my throat at the implications of that statement. The classroom faded once again until all I was aware of was a single, strong heartbeat, pounding several doors down from me. That was enough to kick my protective instincts in. I shot up from my desk immediately.

"Mr. Sindel, I have to go to the nurse," I said quickly, clutching my stomach for emphasis. The prospect of having vomit all over his room didn't sit well with him, and he quickly shooed me out. I raced down the hallway at brisk human speed and followed the sound of my human's heart beat.

**A/N: Thanks again to my reviewers, even though there's less of you than I remembered. That's what I get for going on vacation D: **

**No really, thanks. :) I love writing, I just also love motivation. Let me know what ya'll think. **


	16. Chapter 16: Sometimes, I Worry

**A/N: School starts on the 1****st****. Pity ;_; **

**Birthday on the 2****nd****, though :) **

**Disclaimer: I don't own this disclaimer. [/fail attempt at being clever]**

Chapter 16: Sometimes, I Worry

My dramatic entrance into the gymnasium turned a few heads, but thankfully, it was only a small group of terrified looking freshmen huddled near the doorway that quickly scattered as I flew through the doors and moved to duck behind the bleachers.

"Sorry!" I called over my shoulder to the bewildered students before scanning the crowd on the court, picking out Bella easily. She was holding a volleyball in her hand, staring at it as if it were about to eat her.

"Come on, Swan, let's see some hustle!" called Mr. Miller from the other side of the court, making Bella blush brighter as she carefully took her stance. Her right arm came back slowly before she swung it forward, hitting the ball on the side, causing it to shoot to the left and smack Lauren Mallory right in the back of the head. I winced in sympathy.

"Sorry!" called Bella as Lauren turned around, rubbing the back of her head and seething.

_Look at me. Look at me. Look at me, _I chanted mentally as I stared at Bella intently. As if she could hear me, her eyes wandered over the bleachers and reached me, a smile touching her face briefly. The look quickly faded when she saw my expression and the fact that I was frantically gesturing to the locker room door. She nodded in understanding before turning to the teacher. "Mr. Miller, can I use the bathroom?"

Mr. Miller shooed her with a grunt, calling for Eric Yorkie to take her place as server. I dashed across the court, making it through the door before anyone could even notice me. Bella followed several seconds later.

"What's wrong?" she said immediately, her hand moving to cup my cheek, eyes darkening with worry. "Alice, you're shaking."

Was I? I lowered my gaze to my hands and realized with a start that they were, in fact, shaking. _Stop that,_ I commanded, balling them into fists. I looked back up to meet Bella's eyes, trying to figure out how to break it to her. I decided to tell her the good news first.

"I know where Edward and Jasper are," I whispered. Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth. "And Seth," I quickly amended as I saw what she was going to ask.

"I…that's great!" she exclaimed, though her smile didn't last. "Are they…?"

"They're fine," I said quickly, "But they…found something." I paused to take an unnecessary breath. "A settlement of newborn vampires. They didn't realize it, but…from what Edward told me in a vision, I think it's an army. An army being raised by Victoria."

Her brow wrinkled in confusion at my words, as if she didn't fully understand. "An army? But…why would she raise an army just to get me?"

I bit down on my lip, wondering how to explain this. "Vampires are very territorial, Bella, and very protective of their territories, covens, and especially their…mates," I felt myself blush at the last bit and quickly turned away so she wouldn't see. "She'll stop at nothing to avenge James, which is why she'd want to get to you so badly…she thinks you're still with Edward, and that her best revenge would be achieved with you; taking his mate from him like he took hers," I explained quickly. "She knows how strong we are, that she can't defeat us herself, so she's enlisting a bit of…help," I growled the last word softly.

She took a long blink, absorbing the information I'd just given her. "But I'm not Edward's…" she trailed off, quickly turning red. Unable to help myself, I reached out and softly stroked her flaming cheeks.

"I know, but that distinction isn't going to mean much to her. Besides…I was the one who actually killed James." A was suddenly filled with the memory, the burning anger I'd seldom felt before returning to me as I recalled jumping on top of the tracker and twisting his head off in a fit of absolute fury. That's what he got for hurting Bella.

"Promise me you'll be careful," said Bella urgently, returning my mind to the present. I stared at her in confusion.

"Me? I do believe _I _should be telling _you_ to be careful."

She smirked at that. "I know how you treat your enemies," she said with a hint of mirth, clearly recalling James as I had a moment ago, "I know you won't stop at anything to fight off Victoria. And it's not just her now. I can't imagine you facing down an army and I just…I want you to be careful, Alice," she finished, genuine concern in her eyes. Not long ago, I would have snorted at that and made some crack about my arms of steel, but as I quickly thought about all of my recent changes I decided against it and just nodded my head.

"I'll be careful," I promised, leaning in to kiss her softly. I had meant it to be gentle and innocent, but the next minute my lips were moving against hers hungrily, her hands snaking around my waist and pulling me in closer. I managed to forget that we were in a rather public place and, much too interested with what Bella was doing, the vision that played at the back of my mind failed to register with me until a minute later.

The door opened then, and my head whipped around to meet the wide eyes of Angela Weber, standing frozen in the doorway. I quickly removed my hands from Bella's waist and took a rapid step back. The room was absolutely silent for about 3 seconds before I decided to break it.

"Hi Angela," I said cheerfully, smiling as naturally as possible despite the fact that she'd totally just walked in on me sucking face with Bella.

That seemed to break the spell. "Hey, Alice," she said to me. "Mr. Miller told me to tell you that we're heading outside, Bella," she informed, breaking out into a small grin and clearly trying to fight back laughter.

Bella stopped staring at the floor and slowly looked up, her eyes darting between me and Angela. "I-I'll be right there, Angie," she stammered. Angela raised a questioning eyebrow before looking at me.

"If you say so," she giggled, giving Bella a 'we're-so-going-to-talk-later' look before turning around and heading back out.

"Thank god that wasn't Jessica," breathed Bella in relief, "she'd never let me hear the end of it."

I smirked at that before meeting the eyes of my human, returning to serious matters. "I'm going to keep an eye on the perimeter," I told her. I doubted they'd actually be here so soon, but the visitor from last night had me on edge, and there was no way I'd be able to focus on anything that didn't involve protecting Bella at the moment. She nodded, probably coming to the same conclusion I had.

She kissed me again, keeping it quick and innocent this time. "Stay safe," she whispered as she pulled away, turning towards the door, casting me one last glance over her shoulder before running out into the gym.

I sighed heavily, leaning back against the lockers with my eyes closed and letting myself have a moment of bliss before I started guard duty. My body thrummed with pleasure at the encounter, and I felt a smile breaking out despite the tension of the situation I was in. Being with Bella was calming, soothing my nerves in a way I hadn't even known was possible before. I basked in the warmth of the gentle, warming feelings for a moment before the hum of contentment became a throbbing of restlessness, a powerful desire to protect. I carefully climbed up the wall of the locker room, darting out of the high window with ease and taking off into the trees that surrounded the school.

* * *

"An army of newborns," sighed Carlisle on the other end of the phone, "lovely."

"I figured I'd call and let you know," I answered, quickly scrambling up a tall tree that would give me a nice view of the entire school.

"Yes, a vampire bent on our destruction raising an army of newborns would fall under the category of 'things you should call and tell me immediately,'" he said blankly. Despite the humor in his words, I could hear the strain in his voice as well as the rustle of paper in the background.

"Actually, I only did it to cover my ass," I joked. "When the principle calls you and tells you I cut classes, I wanted you to know why."

"I highly doubt they'd attack this soon," he said absently, still flipping through papers on his desk.

An image of Bella popped up in my mind. "I'm not willing to take any chances."

He sighed again, clearly worried. "No, I suppose you're not. Edward and Jasper are alright?"

"As far as I could tell," I explained. "I only saw Edward, and he looked a bit…disheveled. He's probably dealing with a lot right now, trying to track and quietly destroy an army, but physically there didn't seem to be anything wrong with him. He said Jasper and Seth were fine, too."

"Ah yes, Seth," he muttered darkly. "The wolves have been _very_ interested in what I know about him lately." I groaned at that one. "Apparently, your talk with Jacob went public among the pack this morning."

"That much I figured," I sighed, "He showed up at school this morning and made a bit of a scene. No harm done, but Sam had told him…the nature of my relationship with Bella. I assumed he'd told them what I knew about Seth, too."

"That he did. They've been calling my office all morning demanding answers I don't have. In all honesty, they're making me a little bit nervous. I've been trying to calm them, of course, but they're very protective of their pups. There really isn't a lot I can say," he confessed. I recalled the fire in Jacob's eyes when he'd first questioned me about Seth and found that I knew exactly what he was talking about. Then I remembered what else Edward had told me in the vision.

"Tell them about the army," I blurted suddenly, "but make _sure _you tell them that Ed and Jazz are protecting Seth and not letting him fight. They need to prepare for this as much as we do, and they should know where their youngest pup is."

"Yes, I'll tell them when they call back, which, knowing them, will be very soon. I assume you've told the others about the army?"

"I told Rose, and I saw her tell Emmett a few minutes ago," I confirmed.

"_Paging Dr. Cullen to Emergency,_" said a mechanical voice in the background.

"That's my cue," said Carlisle. "Do be careful, alright Alice?"

Great, now he was saying it, too. Still, I chose not to call him out on it. "Will do," I said simply before hanging up and returning my full attention to the school and surrounding areas.

* * *

It wasn't until much later - right before the bell was to ring at the end of the day - that I picked up on anything even remotely out of the ordinary. A distant motor drew closer, and I perked up on my tree perch, instantly alert. I scanned the future and saw…nothing.

"Damn it!" I swore under my breath, sliding down from the tree and dashing into the parking lot, perching behind my car. A moment later the same motorcycle from this morning pulled into the lot, parked haphazardly near the sidewalk, and rumbled to a stop. The rider got off quickly and pulled his helmet off, then leaned back against the bike facing the front door.

I stared at him for several moments, wondering why he seemed to be ignoring me. There's no way he wouldn't have noticed me here...

"Jacob?" I asked curiously, and the boy jumped a mile.

"Jeez! Who the –" he whirled around, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of me stepping out from behind my car. "Cullen," he spat. "Don't ever fucking sneak up on me like that again."

"Didn't know I could," I said honestly, staying about 20 feet away from him. We could hear each other perfectly; there was really no need to stand closer. "What brings you back?"

He leaned back against the bike, facing away from me and re-crossing his arms. "Gotta talk to Bella. It's none of your concern," he growled under his breath.

I said nothing at first, building the silence for several tense minutes as I contemplated how to approach the situation. "You know I'd never hurt her, right?"

He snarled vaguely in response.

"Can I at least explain?"

He whirled around again, his eyes blazing. "Explain what? You're a fucking _vampire. _You're not even alive. It was sick enough finding out what your leech of a brother really was, but at least he had the decency to leave!" he barked. "You had to come back, right when she was getting better, and fucking take her away from me! It's fucking sick!"

"Jacob…" I started, sighing heavily, "I'm sorry for the pain my actions have caused you. But no one's forcing her to be with me. If she chose you over me, I'd let her go without a fight," I breathed.

He snorted. "Yeah, right."

"I'm serious. My instincts…wouldn't let me interfere with her happiness." I took a hesitant step closer, and he flinched. "It's the way I'm wired. I have to do whatever's best for her. I have to protect her."

The tone in my voice caught him off guard. "Why do you say it like that?"

I caught the edge in his words and slowly lowered myself into a sitting position. "She's my singer. I'm powerless to resist her."

He blinked, clearly not understanding.

"When I'm with Bella, I feel a pull. It's not like anything else. She smells incredible to me, more so than she would to any other vampire." I saw him wrinkle his nose in disgust at that, but he didn't interrupt. "When I'm near her, I'm always acutely aware of her presence. Even now, I can hear her heartbeat above all the others inside," I said with a quick glance at the school building. "Instinct drives me to protect her in ways that I'd never feel towards anyone else. She's special to me, Jacob. I'd never let any harm befall her," I pleaded, praying he'd understand. I'd intentionally left out the part about her blood singing to me, knowing that it would probably just freak him out.

He shifted slightly, then sighed. "I'd rather she be with you than _him_, but I'm far from being thrilled about the situation," he muttered darkly. "I meant what I said about you being different than the others. But I still hate what you are, and I always will," he turned away from me fully, signifying the end of the conversation. I stood up, moving to lean back against my car.

"Cullen," he said roughly, and I whirled around in surprise to find him glaring at me with smoldering eyes. "One more thing. If you change her, for any reason, I will kill you. Personally. And don't think I couldn't do it."

I believed him.

"Consider me warned," I answered, "And in return, I'll thank you not to discuss what I just told you. Not with Bella."

He snorted loudly, tilting his head away. "No worries there." I suddenly realized why he kept looking away from me when I heard a very slight sniffle. He was fighting back tears with everything he had. Pity blossomed in my chest as I turned away, facing my car. I wouldn't let him know that I had heard him. In his position, I would probably be feeling a lot worse.

The bell rang then, and students soon started pouring from the front doors, racing to their cars. They gave Jacob a wide berth, many eyeing him warily. He kept his focus locked on the door, not moving an inch. I moved from my car and passed him, meeting Bella as she came through the door. I could see the anxiety in her eyes right before she caught sight of me, breaking into a hesitant smile. I knew she was worried.

She pulled me into a hug that was tighter than usual and seemed very reluctant to let go. "Jacob's here," I whispered softly into her ear, feeling her body stiffen at both my words and the sight of wolf boy himself.

"Perfect," she muttered, gripping my hand tightly before striding across the sidewalk to meet him. She came to a stop about ten feet from him, crossing her arms over her chest. He glanced in her direction.

"I'm sorry," he managed to mutter softly. I could see how much it cost him.

"No, you're not," Bella disagreed. "Besides, I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," she glanced back at me, her expression softening. I had moved to stand right behind her, watching the scene carefully.

Jacob started at that, his eyes reluctantly meaning mine. "I'm sorry I attacked you," he muttered a minute later, his eyes lowering to the ground. I knew he didn't mean it, either, but I nodded my approval.

"It's alright," I said simply.

"No it isn't," said Bella, taking another step forward. To my surprise, Jacob took a hasty step back, nearly tripping over his kickstand in the process. "I don't care what the situation is; you do _not_ handle my girlfriend or any of my family like that. You hear me?"

I stepped forward and took her hand gently, squeezing it. She relaxed slightly, leaning back towards me. I saw Jacob's eyes lower to our hands, then he sighed and pointedly looked away. "I've got it. Really. And I am sorry. I came to tell you that I shouldn't have overreacted," his jaw clenched and I could tell that he still thought he hadn't actually overreacted. "I also wanted to invite you to a bonfire we're having tonight."

"I don't think that's a good idea," I spoke up, and Jacob seethed at me. I glanced around to make sure that none of the few lingering students were in earshot. "With an army of newborns vampires on the loose, I just don't think that –"

"A _what?_" exclaimed Jacob, his eyes narrowing.

Ah. So word hadn't gotten out yet. Either that or he'd skipped school, stayed away from the rest of pack, and gone off to sulk somewhere. I sighed heavily and quickly relayed what I knew about Victoria's plans.

"God damn it, Seth!" he roared, kicking his bike in anger. "I'll kill the kid when he gets home. I swear to god!" Despite his anger, I could still plainly see the worry in his eyes. He sat back down on the bike, sighing in exasperation.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, "I don't know when they'll be back. He's safe; Ed and Jazz aren't letting him fight."

He snorted, "They fucking better not be," before his eyes moved to meet Bella's, and his expression turned pleading. "Please, Bella…everyone's really on edge about Seth being gone and I know they'd all really like you to be there. We can protect you from anything, you know that."

I frowned, but didn't say anything. Bella turned to me and searched my face.

"You don't want me to go?" she asked softly.

"It's not that," I said quickly. "I trust the wolves and I do know they could protect you, it's just…" I bit down on my lip briefly before continuing, "I can't see you when you're with them, or even be there if something did go wrong. It…unnerves me," I admitted.

She moved to rest a comforting hand on my hip, her lips brushing my cheek softly. "They aren't likely to move into the area without you seeing it," she reasoned, "and even if they did, the wolves are strong. They'll protect me."

I turned away from her face to look back at Jacob, who was making quite a show of ignoring us. I knew that he was still dealing with the pain of Bella's rejection, of her choice of me over him. I knew that he would try to sway her decision, a prospect that didn't sit well with me. I looked back at Bella, though, and saw the love in her eyes. I recalled Emmett's words, the pull he had described, the pull I could feel so strongly, and I knew two things. One was that there was no way that Jacob could compete with this connection, and the other was that I had to tell her. Now.

I squeezed her hand tighter and nodded to Jacob. "When is the fire?"

"Starts at seven," he replied gruffly.

"I'll make sure she gets to the border by six thirty," I said with a curt nod.

"I'll be waiting."

Bella looked between us, her eyebrows rising. "I think I'd just like to point out to all involved that I am perfectly capable of driving," she muttered.

I turned to look at her apologetically. "Sorry, Bella…"

She shook her head, "It's alright. I just don't want you all to have to go out of your way."

"We're not," said Jacob and I at the same time. I glanced at him, smirking slightly. "I certainly don't mind," I said, absently twirling a loose strand of her hair on my finger, "I want you to be safe."

"Same," interjected Jacob.

Bella nodded in understanding. "Alright. Six thirty it is."

"Sweet," breathed Jacob, grinning broadly and reaching for his helmet, "See you there, Bella." He pulled the helmet on over his head, nudged his kickstand up, then drove out of the lot at full throttle. As soon as he was gone, I turned back to Bella.

"Got any plans until six thirty?" I asked cheerfully.

She shook her head and wrapped and arm around my waist, a sly smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "No, why?"

I started leading her towards the Porsche, determined to remain calm and not let her see how nervous I was.

"I'd like to take you somewhere…there's something I should explain."

**A/N: Not much to say. My updates ****may**** slow a bit when school starts, or they actually may get more frequent since I usually work best when I'm putting off assignments, so it's hard to say. Soon to come: some fluff, a few more talks, and danger not far off. **

**Stay tuned :) And tell me what you think. The review button tells me it loves when you guys push it. **


	17. Chapter 17: Good Memories, Bad Memories

**A/N: Oh man the last two weeks have been absolutely crazy…sorry for taking this long! Dx **

**I'm getting used to being back in school and everything. Getting my rhythm back, y'know. I've been trying to snag enough free time to sit down, focus, and write. Rest assured I am very far from being through with this story and ya'll ;)**

**In order to make up for it, this chapter is ridiculously long because I went berserk last night! Yaaaay freaky writer urges! :D (I blew off AP History for you guys.)**

**Also, slight warning, my "going berserk" means that the end of this chapter is a little bit dark and twisted. It's not too horrific, I'm probably just being weird, but still. Just throwing that out there.**

**A HELL of a lot happens here, so pay attention.  
**

**Disclaimer: Your mom does not own Twilight. **

Chapter 17: Good Memories, Bad Memories

"Aw, come on, Alice," whined Bella, "Can't you at least tell me where we're going?"

I glanced sideways, feeling my breath catch in my throat at the sight of her adorable pout. It was never easy for me to keep secrets, especially from Bella, but I resolutely shook my head. "Impatient little human, if I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise!"

"Ugh," she groaned, rolling her eyes at me, "And how do I know you're not kidnapping me?"

I smirked at that. "Because if I was," I whispered suggestively, "you'd be wearing a blindfold by now."

She blushed and turned away, her heart rate increasing slightly at my words. I was driving even faster than normal out of excitement and anxiety, but she hadn't even commented. I discreetly took a deep breath to try to calm myself, breathing in Bella's incredible scent. _Chill out. This is perfectly normal._

Only I would dare to consider 'telling my human girlfriend that her blood sings to me' normal.

"We're here!" I chirped, pulling onto the shoulder, tucking the Porsche behind a few thick bushes to conceal it from the road. Bella glanced around at the nondescript scenery, then looked at me in utter confusion.

"It's…er…lovely?"

I rolled my eyes and slid out of the car, circling it and opening her door before she could even turn her head. "Har har," I teased, sticking my tongue out at her while she closed the door behind her. "It's a bit of a walk from here. Would you like a lift?" I asked, spreading my arms in invitation.

She smiled and put her arms around my neck, a silent acceptance. I effortlessly lifted her off the ground and cradled her in my arms. She closed her eyes tightly, tucking her head against my chest as I took off through the trees. There was no path, but I knew exactly where I was going. Half a minute later I stood at the base of an exceptionally large tree. Ten seconds later I stood on a wooden platform high above the surrounding canopy.

"Open your eyes," I whispered softly; and she did, letting out an amazed gasp at the scenery before her.

We were a few hundred feet in the air, roughly, on a small balcony attached to a small but well-decorated tree house. The forest stretched out all around us before it gave way quite suddenly to the bluffs and, below that, the sea. The distant waves rushed in my ears, the perfect complement to the gentle throb of my human's heart. She didn't move at all from her position in my arms and I was perfectly content with holding her there.

"It's beautiful, Alice…" she sighed, scanning over the scenery once more before turning back to look at my cozy hideaway. A few small bookshelves lined the walls, loaded with copies of some of my personal favorites I'd amassed over the years. Against the far wall was a small but extremely comfortable bed, loaded with overstuffed pillows and a stuffed animal or two. The walls were scattered with pictures and paintings, mostly of my family and I over the years. In the corner was a very old wooden chest set on a pink plush carpet.

"I built the place a few years back, with Esme's help, of course," I explained. "I come here sometimes to think. I've never actually brought anyone else," I confessed shyly.

"It's incredible," she said, turning back to me. "Thank you for bringing me…"

Her words barely registered with me. Our eyes met and her heart rate picked up, thumping erratically. I could feel her warm breath on my face, her fingers resting against the back of my neck, her body heat as it set my skin on fire…I quickly remembered why I'd brought her here in the first place.

"Bella," I said with determination, "There's something I need to tell you."

She nodded slowly, signaling me to go on. Still she made no move to leave my arms and I made none to set her down. I scanned the future but found no clues to her reaction; my doubts were still preventing me from making an absolute decision.

"Remember when we were in Italy, and we talked about…singers?" I asked hesitantly, and she nodded again. "When I explained why Edward had thought you were his singer…I wasn't entirely truthful."

"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion.

"I…" I fumbled for a minute, then closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "I didn't tell you to the whole truth. You're…you're my singer, Bella."

Her eyes widened and her lips parted. Several minutes passed before she actually spoke. "But…how?"

I leaned back against the rail of the balcony, shifting her weight in my arms. "The effect you have on me was…powerful enough that Edward could smell you through my mind. The instinct was so primal that he mistook it for his own," I explained, searching her face for any signs of revulsion. I found only surprise and…delight.

She tightened her grip on me and pulled herself up, kissing me fiercely for a moment. I carefully released her legs and lowered her feet to the floor, never breaking the kiss.

"I knew it…" she breathed against my lips, a single tear falling down her cheek. "I mean…you…it was always so easy with you," she gently pulled me closer, and I reached up to brush her stray tear away. "It explains…everything…"

"What do you mean?" My words were barely audible, as if speaking too loudly would break the fragile spell that kept Bella from shrinking back in terror.

"This…_gravity,_" she bit down on her lip and tightened her grip on my blouse, "I don't know," she shook her head in desperation, her eyes rising to meet mine. "Lately I've…just felt this pull towards you. I can't explain it, really…I didn't want to say anything at first because I was afraid I'd sound weird," she admitted with a slight blush.

And how many nights had I contemplated telling Bella she was my singer, heard the angry words as she spoke of Edward, pictured her screaming and leaving me because of the powerful instinct that bound me to her? Yet she believes that she's the weird one…

"I feel it, too," I said carefully, gently removing the hands that she clutched at my blouse and gripping them tightly, bringing them to my lips in a gentle kiss. "Instinct is driving me in ways it never has before, Bella. I don't completely understand what's happening. All I know is that I love you, and nothing could make me think otherwise."

Her head came to meet my shoulder then, and she took a deep, slow breath. I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around her, loose but protective. She turned her head, hiding her face in my neck as I held her against me. "I love you, too," she whispered, causing me to shiver in delight at the tickle of her breath against my neck.

She slipped out of my embrace and took my hand, gently leading me inside. When I looked at her questioningly she smiled brightly, turning to take in the sight of my small hideaway. "Tell me about these," she requested, pointing to a nearby row of pictures on the wall before dropping my hand and moving to sit on the bed.

I smiled back, glancing over my secluded hollow with a swell of pride. I walked to a row of pictures and showed them off, offering an explanation for each as I went.

"This one's Emmett a few years back," I said with a slight chuckle, "We thought it would be hilarious to put him a tutu." Bella burst out laughing at the sight of a crestfallen Emmett clad in a frilly pink tutu and sulking at the camera.

"That's Ed of course, by the piano. I walked past him with my camera and the light fell on him perfectly while he was playing, I just had to take that shot…Rose, during her brief modeling career…in her defense, it was the eighties," I said as Bella howled at my sister's outrageous outfit.

"Carlisle and Esme on Halloween," I declared proudly, showcasing the perfectly hilarious photo of my adoptive father dressed as a bloody surgeon standing besides Esme, his gorgeous corpse bride. "We found that one a bit ironic. That's me and Jazz, by the diner where we met…oh, there he is dressed as a Confederate soldier. He participated in a reenactment about 10 years ago. He thought it'd be funny…"

I trailed off as I reached the last two. One was a picture of Bella and Edward, standing perfectly side by side on the night of the party that had gone so horribly wrong. The other was one of Bella and I from several months ago, standing together in the school parking lot. I was holding her tightly, opening my jaws wide a few inches from her neck while she regarded the camera with a look of mock terror.

Bella's eyes skated over the one of her and Edward, and a grin broke out on her face as she reached the last one. "Oh god, I'd forgotten that. Emmett took that, didn't he?" She reached out and touched the picture gently, leaning in for a closer look.

I nodded. "He had bought a new camera and he just wouldn't put it down. He tried to get one of Ed leaning in to bite you, but he refused, so I volunteered," I recounted softly.

"It's a great shot," Bella chuckled.

"It was at the time," I agreed, "Though I have to say, it seems a bit less funny now."

She rolled her eyes at me, "You're starting to sound like Edward. It was just a joke."

I glanced back at the picture, hit suddenly with the memory of Florida, when I'd woken up with a burning thirst and nearly pounced on Bella. _Let's hope it _was _only a joke, and not a prediction, _I thought grimly.

I moved to sit on the bed next to Bella, and she immediately curled up against me. I pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head. "I don't mean to be so cynical…" I whispered against her hair, "I just worry about you…about my control…about a lot of things."

She shook her head gently. "Alice," she sighed, "you need to have more confidence in yourself. You aren't going to hurt me." Her hand found mine, lacing our fingers together. Her thumb slowly stroked the side of my hand, subtly heating my frigid skin. "If I was sure before, I'm dead positive now that I know..." she raised her head and brought her lips to mine. "I trust you."

I took in her words, basking in the warmth of her soothing voice. There wasn't anything I could think to say in response to that. To have Bella's undying trust was all I could ever ask for.

"My alarm's going to go off in 3, 2, 1…" I announced, and a loud 'beep' permeated the small space. Despite my warning, Bella still jumped a bit at the sound. "I wanted to remind myself to have you home by now so you can get ready for the bonfire," I explained.

Bella started to nod, then froze, looking at me suspiciously. "Alice Cullen needs an alarm?"

I grinned widely. "Alice Cullen likes to show off," I countered.

She rolled her eyes as I stood up, spreading my arms. Without a word, she wrapped her arms around my neck and I lifted her up, staring into her eyes for a moment before taking off, reveling in the way she clung tighter to me at the sudden speed.

* * *

_Bedroom, hallway, living room, kitchen, hallway, bedroom, living room, front door, living room…_

"For the love god, stop pacing. You're making _me _nervous," snapped Rosalie from across the couch, discarding her magazine with a flourish and fixing me with a pointed glare.

"I'm sorry," I groaned, falling back onto the couch. "Bella's with a pack of werewolves all night and I can't see _anything!_"

"Oh, calm down. Even the oversized mutts aren't dumb enough to let anything happen to her."

I wasn't totally convinced. "That doesn't mean I can't worry!" I countered, shooting off of the couch and continuing to pace. I kept it contained this time, gliding back and forth between just the kitchen and the living room. All the while Rose watched me, completely still, only her eyes moving to follow my movements.

An hour passed. Then another.

"I don't see how you're doing it," muttered my sister, her brows knitting together in confusion.

I stopped short, standing right in front of the doorway. I narrowed my eyes at her. "See how I'm doing what?" I snapped with impatience, anxiety making my tone much harsher than normal. She shifted, looking uncomfortable. The look was so uncharacteristic that I momentarily forgot my worries.

"I don't know how…you can stand to be around her," she clarified, meeting my eyes. "I remember what it was like, Alice. I nearly killed Emmett. I still can't believe that I didn't. And you're here, walking around with Bella as if it's…natural. As if you aren't even fazed by it." As she spoke, her voice became softer and softer until I had to strain my ears to catch the last sentence. I caught her self-chastising tone, as if she blamed herself for not displaying the sort of control she saw me having.

"Oh, Rose…" I whispered, moving back to the couch and sitting, "You were younger then; you didn't have the same control you do now. And Emmett was injured…he was bleeding. That's so different than what I'm going through. Besides…" I dropped my eyes from hers, staring at the floor. "It's hard, Rose. I attacked her," I confessed.

I expected her to get angry, but she said nothing. After a minute passed, I looked up and saw her eyes glisten with tears that wouldn't fall.

"Rose?" I asked gently, instinctively laying a hand on her shoulder in comfort.

"I…I was just thinking…how horrible it would've been…if I'd attacked Emmett," she stammered, and I pulled her into a tight hug. "I still can't believe you, Alice. What you're doing; how strong you're being. Just promise me you'll be careful, and know that I'm always here…"

"Of course, Rose." I was touched by her praise, however undeserving I felt.

"She'll be alright," said my sister with determination, "you have a strong will."

I smiled gently. "Thanks, but it's not MY will I'm worried about right now."

Before she could respond, a vision hit me. I saw Carlisle pull into the garage, enter the house, and ask to speak to me. I came out of the vision quickly and stood up just as I picked up the sound of a car entering the driveway.

"Lovely," I muttered, "He's going to try and distract me now."

Rose raised her eyebrows in confusion just as Carlisle entered the front door, looking at me expectantly.

"No, not right now," I said briskly, "The last thing I need is more stress."

"Would you rather sit here and continue to worry?" he countered smoothly.

I sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of my nose. "It's not going to work if I'm this wound up!" I snapped.

Despite my rude tone, Carlisle was not affected. "And what are you basing this assumption on?" he asked, still in the same formal tone. For some reason, his calm attitude only served to worsen my frantic nerves. I glared at him pointedly for about half a minute.

"Fine," I finally acquiesced, taking a deep, unneeded breath and speeding down the hallway to his study.

"Careful with her," I heard Rose hiss softly behind me.

* * *

"This isn't working!" I growled in frustration, opening my eyes for what seemed like the billionth time and staring at the ceiling with a look that should have been able to make it crumble.

Carlisle sighed gently, standing up from behind his desk. "You aren't even trying, Alice."

"I am!" I snapped. "I'm doing exactly what I did last time. It's not working. There. Can I go now?"

"Alice, this is for _your_ benefit. I'm only trying to help you," he reminded patiently. "I know you're worried about Bella, but I trust the wolves enough to know that they won't hurt her."

I bit down on my lip. Everyone was saying that to me tonight.

"Just try," he requested. "_Really _try. Don't do what you did last time, either. A vampire's brain activity is extraordinarily higher than a human's. A vampire remembers almost everything. Think of it as a giant library," he offered. "You have everything you've ever known in that library. Most of it is organized to perfection, but some of the books are out of place. Not missing, just out of order. You know for a fact that they are in that library, you just have to find them. Instead of focusing on one section where you think they are, focus on the library as a whole. Review what you know. Do a broader search. You may trigger something."

"It sounds so simple when you say it like that," I grumbled, but I closed my eyes slowly and tried to imagine the library he was talking about. There it was - my life on bookshelves. There were countless years of High School, meeting Jasper in the diner, my long break spent in the woods when I was getting used to feeding on animals, my early days as a city-prowler, when I would usually hide from the light and run in the dark to avoid being seen...wait.

In the dark.

_In the dark..._

* * *

_It was dark…again. Everywhere I went in this place, there was darkness. It was my constant companion, the perfect complement to all of the screaming. I hated it. Deep, suffocating, choking…worse than the bounds that held me to the table below because I knew, in the back of my mind, that eventually they would untie me, but they would never release me from the darkness. It was always with me. _

_Now, it seemed thicker…more palpable. I felt the itch of fabric on my face and realized that I was blindfolded. Blindfolded, bound, and shaking with fear._

"_Another one?" growled a deep, rough voice. I cringed when I heard it, feeling as though someone had just shoved sandpaper down my ear canal. Leonard. "It's late. I'm tired and I want to go _home!_" The last word was practically a roar that made my skin crawl. Dimly, I was aware of an odd feeling within my chest. My ears picked up a strange sound…almost like a distant war drum that grew quicker as Leonard spoke… _

_ "Just one more, Leonard," assured a much softer, high-pitched voice that squeaked slightly at the sound of Leonard's booming exclamation echoing off the walls. "Patient fifty-seven."_

_ The man chuckled humorlessly, apparently forgetting his anger a moment ago. "Have you read this? 'Dementia praecox.' This one's in trouble if that's what it is." _

_ "Can…can she be fixed?" the other voice asked hesitantly. _

_ "FIXED!" Leonard boomed angrily before bursting into a bout of grating laughter. "Fixed! She's a loon, Carl. Completely lost her mind. Do YOU know how to build a mind, Carl?" _

_ "I…well, no, but –"_

_ "Exactly. Pipe down. You're supposed to be learning, not sitting there acting like you know everything," he grunted. "Now think. Dementia praecox. What do we do in a case like this?" he asked in a mocking tone, as if he were speaking to a small child. _

_ "Well, eh…" His tone sounded flustered. There was a frantic rustling of paper. Something crashed to the ground and the man yelped like a frightened puppy. _

_ "YOU PUT THAT DOWN!" Leonard screamed, and the distant war drum skipped a beat. "You're beyond notes, you useless bastard! This is reality! You don't get to cheat off a paper!" _

_ I received a vision then. A needle sticking into my arm. A burning pain, a blistering heat. My lungs constricting, my throat tightening. Lights dancing before my eyes. _

_ "No!" I screamed, my shrill voice piercing through the silence that had fallen immediately after Leonard's outburst, "Don't touch me!" I thrashed wildly in my bounds, fighting to loosen them. "Keep your dirty needles away from me!" _

_ "SHUT UP!" screamed Leonard, much closer now. I felt a huge hand close around my forearm, helping to hold me down to the table. _

_ The student, however, took my words as a lifeline. "In-injections?" he whimpered. _

_ There was a pause. I received a vision of a huge hand barreling towards my head. I had just enough time – and room – to roll my head out of range. Leonard's hand smacked the table with a reverberating 'clang.' He swore profusely. _

_ "You FREAK! You keep your mouth shut now, you here? You give my student any more answers and I might have to double your dosage!" _

_ I bit my lip, fighting back the tears. How could they sit there and discuss how best to pain me? What had I done? I hadn't hurt either of them, I didn't even _know _them as anything besides faceless voices. _

_ "What did I do to you…" I asked softly, fighting the edge in my voice, "Why are you doing this?" I begged the man that still had my arm in a vice grip. He didn't even answer me. _

_ "She's raving again. Make a note of what she says. She rambles like this sometimes," he grunted, tightening his grip on my arm. "Fill the syringe and give it to me." _

_ "NO!" I cried, squirming in his grip. His other hand came to meet my other arm. _

_ "Carl, the sulfur. NOW!" _

_ There was a shuffling of feet and a soft clatter, then I felt a sharp point jab into my arm. I winced as the syringe emptied, sending a sharp tingle through my arm. Leonard released me and I heard him take a step back. I was full on shaking now._

_ "Tell me why I just did that," Leonard stated simply, sounding as if her were just inches in front of my face. I felt his sour breath on my face, but I did not flinch. _

_ "Er…to elevate her body temperature?" offered Carl hesitantly. _

_ "Good," said Leonard simply. "Elevating the body temperature can serve to ease the symptoms of dementia praecox. They tend to stop raving when you inject them." _

_ The tingle spread through my arm quickly, settling in my chest. My lungs raced, struggling to take in enough air. I felt as if my insides were coated with hot lead. My throat constricted, making my breaths come out as short gasps. Speaking quickly became impossible. _

_ "You see?" said Leonard, almost proudly. "Get the thermometer, quickly! Write down any changes you observe. This is her first treatment, so we can't be sure it will work," he explained, his voice sounding further and further away in my ears. The war drum was sounding sporadic now… it was growing fainter. What was that, anyway?_

_ "Leonard," said a third voice: one so strong that I heard it clear as a bell, even though all other sounds in the room were growing quieter. "It's late. You should go home." I could detect a hint of underlying anger in the beautiful voice. Alexander. I opened my mouth to try and speak, to plead, to beg that he take me off of this table and make the weight in my lungs go away, but all that came out were short, barely audible gasps. _

_ "What are you doing here?" demanded Leonard. "Get out. This is my patient. If I want a second opinion, I'll ask you."_

_ "The warden has called you. He hoped to speak with you before you left. If you doubt me, I'm sure he'd love to know that you have decided to disobey orders," said Alexander, keeping his voice level and perfectly calm. "I would be happy to escort your patient back to her room." _

_ There was a tense moment of silence before I heard the rapid of shuffling of feet, and a door slamming angrily. "Out," said Alexander menacingly, and I heard Carl squeak and run for the door. A moment later, cold hands were on my face, soothing the burning heat of my skin. The blindfold was gently lifted, and I blinked in the light that was too harsh for my eyes. _

_ As soon as I could properly see, I stared up into the most kind, gentle face I could imagine. His skin was pale white, a striking contrast to his cropped black hair and strange golden eyes. He was tall, strongly built, looking as if he should be a soldier rather than an employee at a lunatic asylum. His face was full of caring, and his touch was impossibly gentle. I felt compelled to speak to him, a need to thank him for the kindness he was showing me, but my throat would not open. _

_ "They do this because they know no better, Mary Alice Brandon," he answered me in a soft, soothing tone as he carefully untied my bounds. "They are afraid. They don't understand you, and so they feel they must control you." _

_ He freed the last strap, but I didn't move. My entire body was shaking violently, and I doubted that I could even stand up. I didn't try to speak anymore; the pain in my throat and lungs was too much. Burning tears rolled down my face. Alexander leaned over me, gently laying a cold hand on my neck and frowning deeply. _

_ "Sulfur. I told them it wouldn't work," he muttered bitterly, turning to the line of cabinets beside the table. "Even if it _was _dementia praecox, pumping sulfur into the human body isn't going to magically cure the mind…here, take this." He produced a small glass bottle filled with large, chalky tablets. I tried to reach out a shaking hand to take the bottle, but found that I couldn't close my hand around the bottle. Noticing this, Alexander lowered the bottle and leaned over me. _

_ "Is there pain in your throat?" he asked softly. I nodded feebly as he turned away and dashed across the room at a speed that shouldn't be possible for anyone to reach. He filled a small glass with water, then crushed one of the tablets effortlessly in his hands, sprinkling the powder into the glass. He rushed back to me and gently lifted my head up, pouring the fowl mixture down my throat while I coughed and sputtered. _

_ "It's not good, I know," he whispered apologetically, "but it should ease the pain in your throat and bring down the fever. I wish I could do more for you…" he grimaced, as if he were the one in pain. _

_ "Whatever they tell you, Mary Alice, you have to remember...you are _not _insane. You are _not _worthless. I'll have you out of here as soon as I can, I promise." He gripped my arm firmly at his last words. I tried in vain to say something, but still, only frantic breaths would come. _

_ "Alexander?" called a voice I didn't recognize from the doorway behind me. Alexander's head shot up to the door briefly before he turned back down to me. Almost before I even had time to blink, the blindfold was back on me and I was forced into a standing position, firm hands holding my arms in place behind me. The sudden movement made my head throb and brought tears to my eyes. I heard footsteps approaching from the direction I assumed was the door. _

_ "I'm so sorry…" whispered Alexander almost inaudibly as he handed me to another pair of rough hands. _

_ "You're in late," remarked the voice of the man that held me. His tone was bored, but his grip was tight. I tried to move my wrists and realized that they had been bound with rope. How in the…?_

_ "Just tending to Leonard's patient while he speaks with the warden," came the effortless reply. _

_ "Next time, don't stay so late. The warden doesn't want the patients out past curfew. I'll take this one back to her room." He started to lead me, but my feet were shaking so badly that I tripped and hit the floor, slamming my head on the hard tile. A strangled cry broke from my lips as pain blossomed in my already throbbing head. _

_ "Stupid little…" muttered the other man, and I gasped loudly as something blunt hit me square in the chest. The pain was unbearable, searing my already straining lungs. I felt something warm running down my neck. _

_ "Don't kick her!" protested Alexander, "Her lungs are weak!" _

_ The man just grunted and hoisted me off the floor, dragging me back to my room gasping and shaking. The tears flowed down my face in rivers, but I couldn't even manage to force a sob past my throat. All around me, the screams echoed off the walls. _

I'll kill myself…_I thought as I was haphazardly thrown into my room. The blindfold was torn off, but there was hardly any difference between the darkness cast by a cloth and that cast by my prison. I curled up on the filthy floor, gasping roughly and willing my lungs to take in more oxygen. _

I can do it. I have no ties to this world. I just have to find something sharp, or beg Leonard to give me the double injection he threatened, hold my breath until I turn blue…

_Despite my thoughts, my lungs were fighting harder than they ever had. I pressed my lips together tightly in an effort to stop them. The throbbing in my head and chest increased as I tried desperately to suffocate myself. Thanks to Leonard's treatment, I was already halfway there. I just needed to get myself over that last edge…_

_ About a minute had passed and still my lips remained firmly shut. I felt as if pressure were building inside of me, threatening to rip me apart at the seams. My brain was getting foggier. I watched as bright colors danced in the darkness surrounding me, transfixing me with their brightness. _

_Another minute. How long would this take? The pain was getting worse now…that wasn't how it was supposed to be when you die…_

_Finally, I could take it no longer and took a shuddering breath that burned my throat as it went down. The haze that had settled over my brain did not recede as my lungs again tried desperately to draw in more air. My last thought before I lost myself was a promise. _

"I'll try again in the morning…"

* * *

"Alice! Alice, you're alright!"

"I _can't breathe!"_

I took in huge gulps of oxygen, clawing at my neck wildly as my hysterical gasps reached my ears. A pair of hands rested on my arms, gently but firmly holding them to the ground. My eyes shot open and I snarled at the face of my assailant with an anger I don't remember ever showing before, but I was not staring into the face of an asylum employee as I had been expecting. It was my mother.

Esme didn't flinch at my vicious outburst, her face the picture of calm as she watched my face, waiting for signs of recognition. As soon as I saw her I relaxed considerably, though my body still thrummed with adrenaline.

"E-Esme…" my voice came out as a weak stammer, and my adoptive mother gently loosened her grip on my arms, worry sparkling in her eyes.

"Oh, honey…" she whispered softly in a voice that could break my heart.

I launched myself at her then, latching onto her tightly as my body shook violently with sobs. She said nothing, only rubbed my back soothingly and rocked me back and forth from our position on the floor. I breathed in her scent, trying to banish the memory of the dank cell I had been confined to just moments previously. I didn't have time to marvel at the fact that I was crying this time. The wrenching sobs still frightened me, but not nearly as much as the memory I had just re-lived.

It had seemed so _real._

My hands tightened on Esme's blouse as I cried harder. I was so lost in my breakdown that it took me some time to notice another pair of hands gently snaking around my waist, pulling me closer and out of Esme's embrace.

_Bella._

I slowly eased my eyes open and looked up at her, startled by the sight of tears falling down her cheeks. Her eyes mirrored mine and she raised a hand to gently wipe the tears from my face. She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to.

The tears blurred my vision again and I rested my head against her chest, wrapping my arms around her as tightly as I dared. Her heartbeat pounded in my ears as I took in her scent, using it to ground me.

We stayed that way – kneeling on the floor of Carlisle's study, holding each other tightly – for most of the rest of the night.

**A/N: Wow.**

**I actually wasn't planning on making that vision quite as intense as it ended up being, but if any of you out there are writers, I'm sure at least some of you know that stories have a tendency of writing themselves sometimes. This was one of those times. I went over it repeatedly and decided that I liked what my subconscious had written, so I stuck with it. What am I if I don't trust my writing?**

**Also, about the vision, I did a bit of research into the subject because I have virtually no knowledge whatsoever concerning medical procedures or lunatic asylums of the 1920s. It's just not my specialty. Here's a short run-down if you're confused and/or want more info:**

**Dementia praecox is essentially what schizophrenia was called in the early 20****th**** century. It was "treated" by injecting sulfurous mixtures into the patient in order to elevate body temperature, which was believed to relieve symptoms. Some mixtures of sulfur are highly toxic, and asphyxiation is a common reaction experienced by those who are exposed to high levels. **

**I think I got the massively dark mood out of my system, so fluff central for the next chapter. :D! **

**I hope you enjoyed! As always, please review! **


	18. Chapter 18: Come to My Rescue

**A/N: …Insert worthless excuse here?**

**Nah. I'll be honest. I've had to write about a trillion and a half other things lately (for school, friends, distant relatives, bug-eyed monsters from Pluto, etc…) and it didn't really give me much time and creativity left to continue this story. So I tabled it (temporarily), 'cause all my free-time has been spent: a) learning French (long, weird, funny story), b) writing bad poetry, c) sleeping, or trying to.**

**I originally started this story waaaay the hell back when I was dating someone and felt all cutesy about it, then kept writing it and started publishing after she dumped me, 'cause, despite the logic that would tell someone who's heartbroken that they shouldn't be writing romance stories, it was the greatest therapy ever. Now, I'm in that awkward "I-have-a-raging-crush-on-a-girl-who's-probably-straight" phase (again), and I guess I need more therapy.**

**Or maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment. **

**Whatever. Point is, this story's my heart in text form. I'm not exaggerating. I know where it's going, how it's gonna end, yadda blah blah. Just bear with me. **

**(Completely random fun-ish fact: As I write this, I'm about 30 minutes away from Forks. It's also Christmas night, although this probably won't make it up for a bit since I don't have internet, but still. Merry Christmas!)**

**Disclaimer: Maybe if I owned Twilight, "girl-who's-probably-straight" would like me. **

Chapter 18: Come to my Rescue

When you're a vampire, time means something utterly different than when you're a human. I've watched people around me for years, how the passage of months, weeks, or even hours can take its toll, tiny instances dragging out into a limitless stretch of infinity. Have a child sit in the corner for five minutes and it becomes five years. Or maybe someone's husband calls several hours late, turning each tick of the clock into another subtle gut-wrench. It's grim, yet fascinating, I suppose. But in the world of immortals, a day is a millisecond, a week is an eye-blink, and the only way you can really keep track of anything is to look at things by decade, or, if you're even older, by century.

I guess that's another thing Bella changed. I'm not sure if it's the fact that she's a human, or just the fact that, since she came in my life, I've been paying a bit more attention. But, whatever the reason, time seems so much more significant than it was before. Instead of decades or years, my life is lived day-to-day. Time, I realize now, is a gift. And as I lay in a heap on the floor, it slowed even further. I measured the time spent recovering not in hours, or minutes, or seconds…but instead in the deep, gentle breaths of my human as she held me with infinite patience.

Honestly, I wouldn't be able to tell you if I laid there for 5 minutes or 5 years. I didn't care either way. My body, so jolted, so frantic, slowly returned itself to a state resembling normal. When the last of the shakes stopped and my tears had run dry, Bella shifted slightly, her fingers gently running through my hair. I opened my eyes and looked up at her, focusing on her beautiful face to keep myself grounded. I lifted my hand to brush her cheek absently, and she smiled gently at me. I smiled back, moving my fingers to trace the outline of her lips.

"I'm sorry," I whispered softly. She shouldn't be here. She should be at the bonfire, with her friends, having a good time. Not worrying over something like this, my pathetic freak-out over something as trivial as a memory…

She shook her head. "You're apologizing to me for trying to discover who you are?"

I sighed, looking at her with a pained expression. "No. I'm apologizing because you're worried. Again."

Her fingers moved from my hair to my forehead, her gentle, heated touch soothing the phantom ache that still lingered. Slowly, I closed my eyes, submitting to the feelings of exhaustion that threatened to overtake me. Even if I was sorry she was here, I was still infinitely glad that she came.

"You stupid vampire," she said, tracing patterns across my face, her finger leaving a trail of dull tingles on the surface of my skin, "I love you. Of course I'm going to worry about you sometimes," her hand dropped from my face and reached down to take my hand. "And I'm going to be there for you when you need me," she raised our joined hands and kissed mine softly, "always."

I smiled at her words and gentle touch. "Thank you…" I was trying hard not to think of what I'd just experienced and focus on her instead.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked, as if she could read my mind.

I opened my eyes to meet hers. The look on her face was one of concern and understanding. Her hand gripped mine tightly, a touch I was grateful for. I bit down on my lip, then shook my head.

"I…don't think I can right now."

She nodded, playing with my fingers absently. A thought occurred to me.

"How did you know?" I whispered softly.

She moved our entwined hands to her heart. My eyes opened wide as the sound of her frantic beats reached my ears. I was so used to the steady rhythm in the background that I hadn't even noticed it skipping in double-time. I watched her face closely as her eyes fluttered shut and she let out a deep sigh. Gradually, her heart rate decreased. "That's how I knew," she answered as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

I sat up quickly, staring at her in amazement.

"I knew what it meant," she said softly, gently stroking my hand where it rested on her heart, "I knew I'd have to find you as soon as I could."

I blinked, astonished. She leaned forward and carefully wrapped her arms around my waist. "How did you get here so fast?" I asked in confusion. She had been all the way in La Push when I'd been retrieving my memories.

"Hmm?"

"You were at the fire. Miles away," I clarified. Her look of confusion changed to one of understanding, and then of discomfort.

"What?" I asked.

"Alice…" she bit her lip.

"Bella, please tell me," I begged, twisting so I could look at her.

She sighed heavily. "Esme…said you were out for almost an hour."

_An hour! _

What the hell did that mean? Even my longest visions never take more than a few minutes. This one, although far more vivid, shouldn't have been an exception.

Bella seemed to read my mind. "It wasn't a vision. It was a memory. Maybe that made the difference?"

"God. I don't even want to think about this now," I groaned as I leaned back against the wall. Part of me realized how strange it was to be having this conversation on the floor of Carlisle's study when there were chairs not five feet away and a bed in the other room, but the other part of me felt like moving as little as possible. Bella didn't seem to mind. She moved to lean back against the side of a bookshelf beside me.

"How was the fire?" I asked suddenly.

Her eyebrows went up a little at the sudden subject change, but she didn't comment. "Parts of it were interesting," she said slowly, "Like the legend of the tribe's history, the story of how they became werewolves. That was pretty fascinating." She looked away from me.

"I sense there's more."

She growled. The sound was so out of place that I stared at her in astonishment. "When I went to leave, he tried to stop me," she spat venomously. "Tried to tell me I was being ridiculous, that I was just trying to find an excuse to leave. As if he couldn't _hear _my heart hammering in my chest…" She paused, her eyes sliding shut slowly. "I wouldn't listen to him, of course. The idea that he would try to keep me from you is just maddening."

I moved closer to her then, and she automatically put her arms around my waist. I purred in contentment before responding. "Let's not be too hard on Jacob." _Must I keep defending the wolf boy?_

"I think I have every right to be hard on Jacob," she scoffed. "And up until then I was being perfectly nice to him."

"He really likes you, you know." _Traitorous mouth…_

She sighed softly. "I know. But that doesn't give him the right to treat you like this. Besides…I don't feel the same way, and he knows that." She looked down at the floor, her words now coming out in mumbles. "Part of me feels horrible for trying to keep in my life. That same part really feels like I _shouldn't, _because it's hurting all of us, and I can't stand to see him look at you the way he does. But...the other part of me can't let him go because, for a while, he was all I had." She sighed, "I know, I'm not making much sense."

I shook my head. "I know what you mean. Despite everything…he was once a very good friend to you. I can see how this would be frustrating."

"I'm not sure what I'm going to do about him."

"I don't think you have to know. Very few of us seem to have any ideas about what we're going to do anymore."

She chuckled without humor. "I guess not. That reminds me, how are Edward and Jasper?"

"Esme is going to –" I cut off, receiving a quick vision. "Huh. Scratch that. _Rose _is going to go to Seattle and bring them back. Esme apparently wants to stick around after what just happened."

"Can you blame me?"

I turned to look at Esme, who was now standing in the doorway, her posture tense. Her eyes were full of worry, but her smile was warm. Suddenly, I needed my mother.

Bella released me as I sat up and reached both hands out to the doorway as if I was five. She crossed the room and lifted me up effortlessly, cradling me in her arms. Normally, I'd be protesting such an undignified position, especially with Bella in the room. Tonight, I didn't care. I hid my face in her hair and breathed deeply.

"Bella needs to go home, honey."

"What?" I whined, "Whhyyy?" I really was quite the toddler today. But I couldn't stand the thought of Bella leaving me right now.

"Emmett's watching her house, and he called and said that Charlie's getting nervous."

Bella sighed and stood up. "He's been like this ever since the reports of the wolves started coming in. I'd better go…"

I raised my head and peeked at her over Esme's shoulder. She giggled. "You're such a baby vampire."

I growled dangerously, but she wasn't fazed. She leaned forward and kissed me lightly. When she pulled back, her face was more serious. "You're okay, right?"

I nodded. "I'll be fine."

"I'll take good care of her, Bella," promised Esme.

She nodded gently and left the room. I clung to my mother as she went, a motion that was not lost on her. She rubbed my back softly. "You want to talk?"

I sighed heavily, considering that for a moment. I'd have to talk about what I'd seen sooner or later, so I nodded. She turned and carried me down the hall to my room.

"It was terrible," I whispered, "I don't understand why they'd do all that to me."

Esme sat on a chair beside my bed. She had listened to me intently as I recounted every detail of my memory, her face shifting from shock to anger to sadness.

* * *

"Oh, honey…" she sighed, "I was always afraid something like this might happen."

I thought about that. "I guess I now know why my mind repressed that stuff. It wasn't even that helpful. I mean…he said that was my first treatment…that couldn't have been my whole human life…could it?"

She didn't answer. I continued rambling, my frustration growing.

"I had to have gotten there somehow; I had to have had a family and a life beforehand. _That's _what I want to know! I figured the asylum had to have sucked. I didn't need any proof of that!" I paused to pinch the bridge of my nose with two fingers before blurting out, "And I _still _have no fucking idea who I was!"

Esme lay a gentle hand on my arm. I looked at her, my body shaking slightly with rage.

"You have every right to be angry," she said in a level tone. Despite her words, I felt all of the anger drain out of me. I fell back against the bed, feeling almost defeated.

"Maybe I do. But I don't want to be."

"You've been incredibly strong, Alice," she remarked, her hand now rubbing my arm soothingly.

"Not lately I haven't…" I sat up slightly, leaning back against the headboard. "I barely recognize myself anymore."

She looked at me sympathetically. "You've been going through an awful lot of changes lately. That's never easy."

"I love Bella, mom. I really do."

She smiled. "I know. I'm glad you have her right now."

I looked at her guiltily, "I kind of thought you'd be mad at me."

"Why would I be mad at you?" she asked, frowning.

"I really hurt Ed and Jazz. I helped to drive them away."

She was shaking her head before I'd even finished speaking. "You had absolutely no obligation to stay with Jasper. You need to do what's best for you, Alice."

I bit my lip and turned away, debating on whether to say what I hadn't told Bella. She noticed.

"What is it?"

"I…I tried to fight it, mom," I admitted. "I felt the pull instantly. I tried so hard to fend off the feelings, because I knew that if I acted on them, I'd screw everything up. Pretty soon, I couldn't even pretend to be with Jasper anymore. I just…couldn't fight it. Part of me felt terrible for giving in, but my instincts wouldn't let up. I couldn't stand to be without her."

"You shouldn't have to deny your own feelings, Alice. You're both obviously crazy about each other."

I couldn't help but smile, and I leaned across the bed to hug her again tightly. Something else suddenly occurred to me.

"Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"It doesn't bother you that she's…a girl, does it?"

Esme chuckled softly. "I admit, honey, it's a bit unorthodox, but then, so are you." I laughed along with that one. "But really, don't worry. I've never had a problem with it. I don't think any of us have."

I opened my mouth to respond to that one before I was taken into another vision.

_The door slammed suddenly, and Jasper's fiery eyes turned to meet Edward's. Anger was evident on both of their faces. _

_ "Why did you send him out!" bellowed Edward, shooting off of the bed he had been sitting on. He was in as much disarray as he had been the last time I'd seen him in a vision. Jasper didn't look much better off. "We have to keep him near us as much as we can!" _

_ "Oh?" countered Jasper, "That sure as hell didn't seem to bug you before." __His Southern drawl was becoming more prominent, a sign of his agitation.  
_

_ His answering growl was low and dangerous, "Stop it." _

_ "No. I'm not willing to forget it."  
_

_ "I'm not talking about this."_

_ Jasper crossed his arms tightly. "You know what? You're not the only heartbroken one, Edward."_

_ "Exactly! Neither of us are ready to deal with this!" He stalked closer to Jasper, and the two of them began circling each other._

_ "So what? We just pretend that didn't happen?" _

_ "I'm not like you, Jasper."_

_ "Oh, fuck you!" he slammed Edward hard against the wall, pinning him. "I can feel all of your emotions right now. I know you're full of shit."_

_ "And I can read your mind! Every thought! It's sick!" _

_ He tightened his hold, "You little hypocrite…" _

_ Edward's breathing spiked and he closed his eyes tightly. Jasper smirked at the reaction and leaned in, his face inches from Edward's. "You ready to talk yet?"_

_ Just then, the door burst open and in ran a very furious Rosalie. She grabbed Jasper and threw him across the room, sending a web of cracks across the wall. Edward, too shocked to move, was quickly thrown against the adjoining wall. The blonde stood in the center of the floor, fuming with rage as they both sprang to their feet. _

_ "_Don't. You. Dare. Do that again!_" she screamed at both of them. They flinched in unison. _

_ "Rose –"they started to say as one, but she cut them off. _

_ "Both of you have 30 seconds to gather your shit and get in the car." _

_ A pair of rapid footsteps sounded in the hall and the door opened further. Before the figure could be revealed to me, the vision went black._

I blinked at the light of my room and turned to face Esme, who watched me with a vaguely worried look on her face.

"Everything alright?"

"I…um, don't know," I answered, trying to piece together what I'd just seen. "Uhh…I saw Ed and Jazz. Rose just got to them."

"That's great!" She paused, seeing my expression. "Right?"

I shook my head. "Something weird's going on with them. They were having a fight before she came in."

"Is Seth alright?"

I nodded. "I think so. I'm pretty sure he came in at the end, because the vision cut off." I tried to force the rather disturbing image of an enraged Jasper out of my mind. I couldn't remember ever seeing him like that before.

"And you?"

I thought about that.

"I'm alright, for now. I should probably hunt."

She smiled and kissed me on the cheek. "That sounds good. Edward and Jasper should be here soon."

I couldn't tell if that was a reminder or a warning. Maybe both. "I know, thanks."

She left the room, and I sighed and crossed to the window, looking out at the trees. Normally, I would have put on shoes out of habit, but right now, I didn't care. I dropped to the ground effortlessly and tore across the yard and into the forest, giving in to my simpler instincts. I welcomed the chance to turn off my brain, if only for a little while.

**A/N: I wrote it on Christmas and I'm posting it on New Year's. Call this the holiday chapter. Ha.**

**Anyway, ( and I know my A/N's are longer than usual, bear with me or skip them…) for those of you who have me on author alert, two things. 1) I love you. 2) You'll notice that I'm posting another fanfic. I don't know if any of you read Vampire Academy, but if you don't, do, and if you do, check out my other fic. It is a Lissa/Rose ONE SHOT, (at least for now), because this story is and will remain my baby. **

**Also...I'm thinking about using a beta? Maybe? I admit to having absolutely no idea how one finds a beta, as well as no idea how the beta process actually WORKS, but I'm wondering if I should consider it.**

**Again, apologies for the long hiatus. I don't know where my brain goes sometimes. Christmas night, the little spot in my head where Alice lives decided to poke the rest of my brain incessantly and told me to go write this chapter. So you can all thank her, not me.**

**Regardless, I'd love some reviews. Happy New Year! :)**


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